Politicians in the United States may kill the
Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL) regulations that have been staunchly backed
by the Obama administration, but opposed by Canada, Mexico and most of the meat
packers in the United States.
Both Democratic and Republican leaders on agricultural
issues said over the weekend that they are in favour of proposals to axe COOL
as part of the new five-year Farm Bill under negotiation.
They say the system needs to be scrapped because it has been
found in violation of the World Trade Organization rules and continuing to
pursue it leaves the U.S. open to trade retaliation by Canada and Mexico.
The Obama administration responded to a ruling from the
World Trade Organization by proposing changes that Canadians and U.S. meat
packers say make the system even worse.
Tyson Foods announced last week, for example, that it would
stop buying all Canadian cattle because of the new COOL regulations.
The proposed changes are being challenged on a number of
fronts, including court actions in the U.S. and a review by the World Trade
Organization.
