The regulations require U.S. producers  to indicate the country of origin of their products, but U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has urged U.S. meat packers to “voluntarily” include where an animal was born, raised and slaughtered.  Day claims that this is a subtle tactic to get around  WTO and North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) restrictions against protectionism. The new labeling rules are opposed by big processors, but are supported in the United States by farmers and consumer groups.

 

The regulations, issued in February, will affect the packaging of foods such as cuts of beef, poultry, lamb, chicken and pork, as well as some fruits, vegetables and nuts. Tension between the two nations has increased since Barack Obama’s inauguration. Companies such as Cargill Inc. and Hormel Foods Corp. have stopped buying Canadian hogs all together. Although the new regulations allow producers to label products as “product of the United States and Canada,” Martin Rice, executive director of the Canadian Pork Council said, “U.S. processors simply can’t handle all these labeling combinations. So they’re buying pork from domestic farmers instead.” Canadian pork exports to the U.S. have dropped by more than 40 percent this year and cattle exports have fallen by 25, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

-Ednar Segura, David Wallechinsky

 

Ottawa Prepares to Take on Obama Over Meat (by Barrie McKenna, Globe and Mail)

Canada to Challenge U.S. Food-Label Rules at WTO (by Sheldon Alberts, Canwest)