Fighting the United States Country of
Origin Labeling regulations cost Canadian cattle and hog farmers more than $5
million.
The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association
spent $4 million on lawyers and consultants and related costs over the
eight-yea battle.
The Canadian Pork Council spent more
than $ 1 million.
The federal government isn’t saying how
much it spent.
But hog and cattle farmers took a far
greater hit from depressed prices for their livestock.
United States meat packers had to keep
the Canadian livestock and meat separate in their processing lines to
accurately label the meat.
Those losses were estimated at $3
billion a year.
The politicians finally voted to scrap
the legislation after the World Trade Organization ruled the system illegal and
granted Canada and Mexico the right to assess tariffs of more than $1 billion
on U.S. products.
U.S. President Barack Obama officially
ended COOL legislation when he signed the bill the politicians passed.
