The US Court of Appeals upheld the mandatory country- of- origin labeling (COOL) ruling for meat and meat products currently in place. The decision denies a request for a preliminary injunction to block the implementation of the meat labeling rules. METTLER TOLEDO offers a meat labeling webinar to help ensure retailers are compliant with regulations.
The decision supports an earlier appellate court ruling which determined that labeling was necessary for consumer protection.
The regulation, which went into effect in 2013, requires labels to show where the animals were born, raised and slaughtered. Meat packages now will have a label, indicating, for example, that the animals were "Born, Raised and Slaughtered in Canada" or "Born and Raised in U.S., Slaughtered in Canada."
American Meat Institute (AMI) had sought a preliminary injunction to block the rule’s implementation, charging that the regulations violate industry’s constitutional protection against compelled speech.
"AMI disparages the government’s interest as simply being that of satisfying consumers’ ‘idle curiosity,’” the court said in its decision. “Country-of-origin information has an historical pedigree that lifts it well above idle curiosity." The full ruling can be downloaded here.
METTLER TOLEDO offers a webinar to help retailers understand labeling and COOL regulations. "Key Issues in Labeling and Packaging," moderated by Erik Lieberman of FMI, discusses the laws and trends in nutrition labeling of single-ingredient meat and poultry, country of origin labeling, BPA regulations, enhanced meat product labeling, natural claims, facts-up-front front of pack labeling, extended producer responsibility and menu labeling.
To register for the free, on-demand webinar, visit www.mt.com/retail-labelwebinar.
About METTLER TOLEDO
METTLER TOLEDO is a leading global supplier of precision instruments and is the world’s largest manufacturer and marketer of weighing instruments for use in laboratory, industrial and food retailing applications. The Company is also a leading supplier of several related analytical and measurement technologies. Additional information about METTLER TOLEDO can be found at www.mt.com.