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The Truth About "Product of USA" and "Made in the USA"
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Hi Friend,
If you’re like us, you look for and value a number of labels on food, including the "Product of USA" or "Made in the USA" label. So you may be as shocked as we were to discover that those labels don’t mean what they should mean.
Under current regulations, meat, poultry, and egg products from animals born and raised in another country, can be labeled as "Product of USA" as long as they were reprocessed in the United States. Literally, a company could import ground beef, take it out of whatever it was shipped in, repackage it, and then slap a "Product of USA" sticker on it.
Misleading? It sure is. But the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) didn’t care. Until recently.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), an agency within the USDA, is responsible for ensuring that meat, poultry and egg products are safe, wholesome and properly labeled, and is responsible for the regulation of the voluntary "Product of USA" and "Made in the USA" labels.
After receiving petitions from certain groups, including the American Grassfed Association, and doing a general population survey that showed a majority of Americans expected "Product of USA" to mean products derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered, and processed in the United States, FSIS is proposing to amend its regulations for these voluntary label claims.
Under the proposed provisions, "Product of USA" and "Made in the USA" may be displayed on labels of FSIS-regulated products ONLY IF the product is derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered, and processed in the United States.
As consumers, we have a right to know where our food comes from and how it was produced. Food transparency and truth in labeling are critical to our health and to our ability to make choices that impact animal welfare and the environmental impacts of food production.
Don’t allow the corporate lobby to shut down this much needed change to food transparency and labeling in the U.S.
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Let's stop the deception.
In solidarity,
The GMO/Toxin Free USA Team
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