Letter Opposing Country of Origin Labeling

July 19, 2007

The Honorable Robert C. Byrd
Chairman
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Thad Cochran
Ranking Member
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Chairman Byrd and Ranking Member Cochran:

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world's largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region, urges you to oppose any amendments to the FY2008 Agriculture Appropriations bill, which will be marked up today, that would accelerate the implementation of mandatory country-of-origin labeling (COOL) requirements on meat and produce.

The Chamber has long opposed mandatory labeling because it provides no meaningful benefits and, ultimately, raises consumer food costs. Moreover, implementing COOL is extremely costly and particularly onerous for small processors. Despite strong Chamber opposition, however, mandatory COOL provisions were included in the 2002 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act.

Recognizing the burden COOL would place on businesses, Congress included a moratorium on a mandatory labeling program for meats, fruits, vegetables, and peanuts as part of the fiscal year 2004 Consolidated Appropriations Act. This moratorium is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2008.

As businesses are struggling to ensure compliance with the September 30, 2008 mandatory COOL implementation date, an amendment may be offered at the mark up to accelerate the program implementation date by as much as one year to September 30, 2007. This is not only patently unfair, but also a move that would be extremely burdensome to businesses.

The Chamber urges you to oppose any amendments accelerating the mandatory COOL implementation date and to ensure the fair and reasonable application of this law.

Sincerely,

R. Bruce Josten

Cc: Members of the Committee on Appropriations