New US law requires labels on meat-country of origin labels now required

I live in the Northeast Bronx and I notice the supermarket in my area started putting these new labels on the meats. However the labels read "product of US, Canada and Mexico - very misleading to say the least. We also have to worry about are these meats being inspected. I Don.t like this method at all.

Would like your response.

I am curious as to why this wasn't done sooner.

Such a better way to pinpoint products to avoid when dangerous diseases break out in different regions. It takes all that guessing away.

I don't eat meat, but still this is a great law that should be followed by all meat packaging companies. It's pathetic how the USDA stood against COOL though. It's not the country that necessarily depends on the health of the meat it's the facory it originates from.
I'd like to see them put that on a label and watch the sale of meat drop.

jimwiz3416: I agree. Too bad we can't get it the way nature intended it in the first place. I have always found it ironic that Republicans have been known for supporting "less government" but are always the ones imposing it upon us from our bedrooms to our dinner tables.

The meat industry is completely f***** everywhere. You will all be much safer as vegetarians or vegans. Labels won't help you -- only compassion can. Go veg.

it is a good idea for a start further regulation is coming ie: there are ideas in the works to chip the the animal to track to a indavidual owner or ranch to further track any problems to assist in fast location of any problems .Live along the mexico border you would not believe what your eating in those veggies!!

This is fantastic news & can only get better over time as the process works itself out. Companies should be taking this opportunity to voluntarily provide product info to the growing numbers of savvy consumers. It's a win-win situation.

This is just another tactic to scare us.
www.cuttingthroughthematrix.com

We have never had enough information about where our food comes from. When I was little, my suburbanite cousin decided to become a vegitarian at age 15 because she just found out that the meat she was eating came from animals.

All this tells the consumer is what country or countries it comes from, it does not really protect against anything. In America we have the USDA which is supposedly an inspection process. If the countries of origin have such organizations and they are reliable, then this would be a help but most countries don't have such controls. If you know what countries have inspections that can be trusted and stay with those countries, then this is a good thing. If the consumer does his or her homework then this will help the consumer avoid unsafe countries.

Labeling meat with the country of origin is a worthy legal step!

To be honest, we should also label food that is GMO, Irradiated, gassed, chemically or artificially enhanced or, in any way, different from the way nature intended.

Hmmm, what's left - grass and dandelions...

always wondered where my meat was comin from

Wow that is surprisingly informative of our government. Your this is the US and not Britain or something?

I feel really sorry for the food retail. Its hard enough to run a grocery store, now this had to come up and will be more stressful.

Its also going to be very interesting for people. There's going to be a mixture of different countries within a section of fruit. But it will be nice to see where the food is coming from.

I've always thought that people's insistence on buying American products was sort of pretentious.
Is it really the country of origin that affects the health of the meat? A contaminated factory is a contaminated factory, and they exist all over, regardless of what country they're in.

this really will transpire into an extra economic sanction by the american people against any countries' goods that are found to be harmful or substandard by our government's standards. it will also allow those of us who support the american farmer to follow through with our bucks. nice.

The word "cool" will never be the same.

finally, another useless law.

will restaurants follow this as well?

Whats funny is how long it took this law to go into affect. First steps were taken for this law as early as 2004 and such actions might have had an impact on spending habits and promoted spending on U.S. foods but may have saved lives in the food tampering scandals of the last two years wherin China sold us a bad bill of goods. Frankly this law helps responsible American industry and that's the only type that ought to be supported. If its a german company selling me american beef I'll take it over an American company selling prepackaged beef from China any day.

...if you are going to eat meat....then why not eat all meat....it is all the same....why waste all the meat that you pump full of chemicals and place in the ground....when your loved ones die....the ones from where you came.....eat them....let them be even more of you.....many cultures have done this.....at least they knew what they were eating.....better still...be a Golden Ruler...if you do not want to be eaten...dont eat another.....what about vegetables ....fruits.....you must eat something.....clean them just like you were a raccoon....say a silent thank you that they will become part of you.....like many cultures do....eat it......live long and prosper...Golden Ruler...Will.....

I'm kind of scared to see where all the meat I buy actually comes from.

We should know a lot more then counrty of origin. We should know what farm, what grower, what type of feed these animals are eating and how they are being treated.

Just like many of the U.S government quick fix skeems, this isn't going to solve anything. It will not make our food any healthier or safer for the cunsumors, the animals or the processer's employees in any way.

If anything it will just reiterate any prejudices that U.S. cunsumers already have about other countries.

The more aware we are of what happens to food before it hits our table the better. Everyone should do their research before buying anything. I'll bet if everyone did this, more people would grow their own food.

I just noticed this in the article.....

"The law also covers perishable items, such as fruits and vegetables and a variety of nuts. Some say this will enable consumers to avoid food that, for example, comes from countries that they have heard have food safety problems. It also will allow consumers to stick to American-grown food, if that is their preference."

hmmm? ok now, we may be getting somewhere, now where is GMO forbidden? they have my money!

queenofit... my thoughts exactly. I wouldn't buy meat from any country now. Besides, I stopped eating it to be more environmentally conscious. That's even better if you can do it.

You've done a good job of staying on the case Jan!

If I ate meat still, I would even go a step further than this and just buy fresh from local livestock farms. This way, I would be able to see where the animal was raised and meet who butchered it. Although it holds no real importance, I think it would just give me piece of mind that it was given a good, healthy life.

I'm in no way affiliated with this organization, but for anyone looking for healthy, natural, and mostly grass-fed meat and dairy products, check www.eatwild.com

Now which country has safe meat? certainly not in the us meat processing plants, buyer beware......

The closer we are to knowing WHERE our food comes from and HOW it was grown, the better.

Yes, Will, and I also know labels can be false too... but it's a start and hopefully people will ask questions and become more informed about what their hard earned dollars are buying. I'm wondering if this will also raise the price of meat. Hope not. It's already outrageous along with everything else.

Hallelujah and pass the Porterhouse steak, free range, grass fed, and antibiotic free.

.....Caution....some labels are misleading..........
I bought a Guchi handbag....the G fell off........
it was actually a Huchi handbag........
Lies have taken over this world....it does not have to be a spoken word.....you can print it on a label.....
such as......organic..........Golden Ruler...Will.......

I seen this in a hood of MA and I think is a good idea but it may back fire if the media gets an idea.

Full disclosure is something we as consumers need to continue to demand. Informed choice!

now if only they can do that on all ingredients that are in food.