White House Orders Report on Mandatory Origin Labeling for Beef

President Trump issued Sept. 4 an executive order directing the Department of Agriculture to submit within 90 days a report on all statutory and regulatory authorities that may permit the establishment of mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef products as well as an economic analysis of the impacts of such a requirement that reflects current conditions and modernized practices.

Based on these assessments, the USDA may (1) issue or amend its regulations to require mandatory COOL for beef products or (2) develop legislative recommendations regarding such labeling.

A previous mandatory COOL requirement for beef was repealed in 2015 after a successful challenge at the World Trade Organization.