08/28/07 COOL is not a food safety program

There's been a lot of attention lately about country of origin labeling because of some recent foreign food safety issues. American Farm Bureau economist Jim Sartwelle says don't be fooled by COOL, it's not a food safety program. SARTWELLE "It's not another level of inspection. It's not another lever of testing. It's not another level of food safety. It's merely a mandatory program that at your supermarket you'll be able to look at the package and know exactly where that product came from." The idea behind COOL was never intended to be a food safety issue. SARTWELLE "Various groups thought that consumers would pay more for a product if they knew that it was born, raised and processed in the United States as opposed to an imported product." Sartwelle says there's nothing wrong with a voluntary country of origin labeling bill but when it comes to mandatory COOL that's another story. His biggest concern with a mandatory program is the cost to the producer. Sartwelle says look at what's happened to fish and shellfish which are now required to have a country or origin listing. SARTWELLE "The Food Marketing Institute surveyed their retailers and their suppliers and found out that the actually costs was up to ten times in excess of what USDA had estimated." Labeling for beef, pork, lamb, fruits and vegetables becomes mandatory in the fall of 2008. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott