Current Status of
COOL
The interim final
rule on COOL was published in the Federal Register on August 1st,
2008, and became effective September 30th, 2008.
During the six month
period following the September 30th implementation date, USDA’s
Agricultural
Marketing Service (AMS) will conduct an industry education and outreach
program concerning the provisions and requirements of this rule.
Although there is not a 6-month grace period for implementation, AMS
will be focusing more on education than on enforcement.
Who Is Covered?
This rule covers
retailers and packers who sell and/or supply the covered commodities to
consumers. The covered commodities include muscle cuts of beef
(including veal) and ground beef.
Live cattle are not
commodities and the rule does not specifically cover cattle producers,
but since we supply the live animals that become the covered commodity,
we know that we will see these requirements trickle down from the
retailers and packers to the core of the production chain.
Who Is NOT Covered?
COOL does not apply
to covered commodities produced or packaged before September 30, 2008.
Small retailers are also exempt from COOL. Only retailers licensed as
such under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) of 1930
are subject to the law and are required to label covered commodities for
country of origin. Under PACA, a retailer is any person engaged in the
business of selling any perishable agricultural commodity at retail.
Retailers are required to be licensed when the invoice cost of all
purchases of perishable agricultural commodities exceeds $230,000 during
a calendar year. The term “perishable agricultural commodity” means
fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables. There are approximately 4,000
PACA licensees that operate about 36,000 retail stores. This definition
excludes butcher shops and exporters. Many small “mom and pop” type
retailers will not be covered.
Food service
(restaurants, hotels, caterers, etc) are exempt from COOL. Salad bars
and delis located within retail establishments that provide ready-to-eat
foods are also exempt from the law.
Processed food items
are exempted from labeling and include any muscle cut of beef or veal
that has undergone a change in character, or that has been combined with
at least one other covered commodity or food component. Processing
includes cooking, curing, smoking, extruding, breading, and/or the
addition of sauce. These are just a few examples. The simple addition of
water, salt, or sugar does not constitute processing when it is only
added to the meat as a simple step to prepare for cooking and
consumption.
Some examples include
meatloaf, meatballs, fabricated steak, breaded veal cutlets, corned
beef, sausage, and marinated/flavored beef.
The Four Labeling
Categories for Muscle Cuts of Beef and Veal
U.S. Origin
– Muscle cuts of
beef and veal must be derived exclusively from animals (1) born, raised,
and slaughtered in the United States (including animals born and raised
in Alaska and Hawaii and transported for a period of time not more than
60 days through Canada to the United States and slaughtered in the
United States); or (2) present in the United States on or before July
15, 2008, and once present in the United States, remained continuously
in the United States.
Multiple Countries of
Origin that include the United States
– If an animal was
born, raised, and/or slaughtered in the United States, and was not
imported for immediate slaughter, the origin of the resulting meat
products derived from that animal may be designated as Product of the
United States, Country X, and/or (as applicable) Country Y, where
Country X and Country Y represent the actual or possible countries of
foreign origin. An example of that label would be “Product of the United
States, Mexico, or Canada”
Imported Direct for
Slaughter –
If an animal is imported into the United States for immediate slaughter
(spends less than two weeks in the United States), the origin of the
resulting meat products derived from that animal shall be designated as
Product of Country X and the United States. An example of that label
would be “Product of Canada and the United States”
Imported Beef
– Boxed beef
imported into the United States must be labeled with its country of
origin before it comes into the U.S. An example of that label would be
“Product of Australia.”
Labeling of Ground
Beef
Ground beef shall
list all countries of origin contained within that batch, or that may be
reasonably contained in that batch. In determining what is considered
reasonable, when a raw material from a specific country is not in a
processor’s inventory for more than 60 days, that country shall no
longer be included as a possible country of origin.
Other Provisions
Remotely Purchased
Products
(e.g., Internet sales) - Retailers may provide country of origin
information on the sales vehicle (e.g., Internet site) or at the time
the product is delivered to the consumer.
State and Regional
Labeling Programs
– State, regional, or local labeling programs such as
“Pennsylvania Proud” are NOT authorized to be used in lieu of COOL for
beef. Local labeling programs must also include the country-of-origin
declaration as well. This rule also replaces any State country-of-origin
law that may be in place.
Labeling of the
Product
Retail Notification
to the Consumer
- The label must be in a conspicuous location and legible
to allow consumers to identify the country(ies) of origin. Retailers may
commingle covered commodities from more than one country of origin
provided all possible origins are listed. The COOL notification can be
on the individual package of beef or on a placard or sign as long at it
is conspicuous and noticeable to the consumer.
Recordkeeping for
Retailers and Packers
Retailers must
maintain records or other documentary evidence that permits verification
of origin claims made at retail. These records may be maintained in any
location and, unless specified otherwise, must be maintained for a
period of 1 year from the date the declaration was made at retail. Upon
request, these records must be provided to any duly authorized
representatives of USDA within 5 business days of the request.
For covered
commodities sold in pre-labeled consumer-ready packages, the record must
identify the covered commodity and the retail supplier. For products
that are pre-labeled with the origin information on the shipping
container (or other type of outer container), the label itself is
sufficient evidence on which the retailer may rely to establish the
product's origin at the point of sale. In this case, retailers must
still maintain a record identifying the covered commodity and the retail
supplier. In addition, to allow substantiation of the origin claim, the
retailer must either maintain the pre-labeled shipping container at the
retail store for as long as the product is on hand, or ensure the origin
information is included in the record identifying the covered commodity
and the retail supplier. For products that are not pre-labeled, the
retailer must maintain records that identify the covered commodity, the
retail supplier, and the origin information.
The supplier of a
covered commodity that is responsible for initiating a country of origin
declaration (the packer) must possess or have legal access to records
that are necessary to substantiate that claim. In the case of beef or
veal, a producer affidavit shall be considered acceptable evidence on
which the slaughter facility may rely to initiate the origin claim,
provided it is made by someone having first-hand knowledge of the origin
of the animal(s).
Recordkeeping for
Producers
As stated above, we
expect that an affidavit will be all that is expected of cattle
producers in making their determination of country-of-origin. Usual
business records can be used to verify those claims in the event of an
audit by the packer or retailer. However, USDA has not, and will not,
issue a standardized affidavit. NCBA will be working with industry
partners to develop a standardized affidavit that can be used by all
producers. Until that process is complete, we will not be able to tell
exactly what will be required on the affidavit.
NCBA’s recommendation
is that producers ensure they have some sort of record on hand (import
documents, calf book, health records, or other typical business record)
to verify where your cattle came from. Country-of-origin claims can be
made for an individual animal or a group lot of animals.
For those producers
who participate in a National Animal Identification System (NAIS)
compliant program, the information contained within the system on those
animals will be all that is needed to comply with COOL. No further
records will be required.
Information provided by NCBA.
For more COOL
information follow the links below:
COOL Fact
Sheet
COOL
Information
Provided by USDA
