Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Country-of-origin food-labeling rules about to take effect Starting next week, grocery shoppers will be able to distinguish more easily between U.S.-grown foods and imported products. Foods such as meat, fruits and vegetables will carry country-of-origin labeling beginning Sept. 30, under federal legislation that requires retailers to inform consumers where certain agricultural products come from. COOL applies to fresh beef, lamb, chicken, goat and pork, as well as fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables, macadamia nuts, pecans, ginseng and peanuts. Wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish have had to disclose country of origin since 2005. Retailers may use a wide range of methods to show country of origin, including labels, placards, stamps, bands, twist-ties and pin tags. Some product labels, such as those on meat, may list multiple countries if the animals were born, raised and finished in different countries. The new rule also allows state, local or regional labeling of produce, such as "California Grown," "Washington apples" or "Idaho potatoes," to be used to identify origin....

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