10/17/08 Tyson will meet COOL requirements

Washington Ag Tyson Fresh Meats has sent letters to interested parties indicating the company plans to meet the intent of mandatory country of origin labeling, or COOL, by labeling the majority of their beef and pork products of USA. Tyson, which has a beef plant in Washington, recognizes that around 90 percent of all its fresh retail beef and pork cuts meet the definition of USA and would qualify for the label. Initially, Tyson said it would label all its beef with a North American label such as product of the United States, Canada and Mexico. Undersecretary of Agriculture Bruce Knight said that interpretation is probably beyond the intent of Congress. Knight: "That certainly is a more liberal interpretation than we had in writing the rule at USDA as Secretary Schafer has stated." Knight says however it could take some time to work out just what meatpackers can do with COOL labels. Knight: "What we are intending to do is survey the practices. Work with folks to see how much the flexibility provided, that is legitimate, is legitimate need for flexibility in being able to co-mingle some product. The real challenge is, how much is the appropriate level." That could take some months to figure out. I'm Bob Hoff.