Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 11/6/13


CHICAGO — Lobbyists explained their ongoing efforts on behalf of animal agriculture relative to mandatory country of origin labeling (COOL), immigration reform and the Renewable Fuel Standard as it relates to corn-based ethanol at an educational session sponsored by the North American Meat Association at Process Expo here.

COOL
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Vice President for Governmental Affairs Colin Woodall predicted the World Trade Organization in early 2014 would likely rule against the revised COOL rules UDSA issued on May 23 and that trade retaliation would ensue.

Both Canada and Mexico have already said they would retaliate if the current COOL rules were not suitably altered, and Canada has gone so far as to specify products and trade implications by state.

“The only vehicle to fix COOL is the farm bill,” said Woodall. “The only fix is full repeal of COOL... We are going to continue to push to take COOL off the table for good.”

Woodall said there is less congressional support for COOL than during previous farm bill negotiations.
He said that while the National Farmer’s Union, which strongly supports COOL, may point to poll data showing consumers want to know where their meat comes from, Kansas State University research shows that consumers purchase on price and quality, not origin. He said the Kansas State research showed that five years after COOL was implemented, 70 percent of consumers do not even know origin labeling is on the package.

On Nov. 23 the six-month education period USDA allowed ends and the agency will start enforcing the May 23 rules that mandate labels on most beef, pork and lamb muscle cuts at retail specifying where the animal was born, raised and slaughtered.

On Wednesday, NFU President Roger Johnson issued a statement saying, “The opponents to COOL have already lost one battle in an ongoing lawsuit in the U.S. District of Columbia court. The World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled earlier this year that the COOL law was compliant. It seems as though the opponents are confident, as we are, that WTO will also rule in our favor by finding the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) rules to be compliant as well. They must be worried...NFU will continue to defend the COOL law and urge Congress and other policymakers to allow the law to be implemented with the final rule issued by the USDA earlier this year.”  

Immigration
The Keys Group principal Chandler Keys told the group immigration reform efforts on behalf of meat processors —major first employers of immigrants — center on improving the effectiveness of the E-Verify program by enhancing the ability of employers to ascertain if applicants are using a stolen identity.

The ability to ask certain personal questions to confirm identity would help employers, but as Keys pointed out, with concerns already heightened about government spying, the civil rights implications of allowing such questions may be difficult to overcome.  

Keys said while there is an amendment to immigration reform on the table that would help employers, the Senate bill contains amnesty for existing illegal immigrants, a provision the House will not likely allow. He also warned that the window on immigration reform could close in May, due to approaching midterm elections.

Ethanol
“I think we are in a better position on ethanol than we have been in a long time,” Keys told the group.
He noted even the Environmental Protection Agency has acknowledged it may not be possible to increase the ethanol mandate in the Renewable Fuel Standard. Gas consumption is down, in part due to more fuel-efficient cars and a declining population.

The challenge, however, for the meat industry lobby is to educate legislators on the Energy and Commerce Committee about the role of corn in the food economy and its impact on the cost of producing meat.  
Another challenge, according to Keys, is that there are ethanol factories and jobs out there to be protected by legislators. There is also the fact that every presidential candidate must campaign in the corn-producing state of Iowa where ethanol production helps boost the prices farmers receive.

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