House of Representatives vote in favor of repealing COOL

Jun 11, 2015

The bill will now be presented to the US Senate

The United States House of Representatives has voted in favor of repealing the controversial country-of-origin labelling (COOL), a measure that’s caused some agricultural trade tension with respect to American agriculture trade with Canada and Mexico.

The House voted 300-131 late Wednesday to get rid of the COOL policy that mandates producers and processors identify where an animal was born, raised and slaughtered.

Vote ballot

The vote comes after Canada and Mexico approached the World Trade Organization (WTO) to impose monetary retaliations on the United States. Canada asked for a $2.5 billion retaliation and Mexico a $653 million retaliation.

The WTO is the governing body that’s denied the American push for COOL on four different occasions.

While the vote is a big step in the right direction, Canadian officials realize there’s still a way to go.

“(Wednesday’s) vote in the U.S. House of Representatives sends a strong bipartisan message that COOL must be repealed once and for all,” said Minister of Agriculture Gerry Ritz. “While this marks a positive step, the only way for the United States to avoid billions in retaliation by late summer is to ensure legislation repealing COOL passes the Senate and is signed by the President.”

The next step in the process to repeal COOL is to present the measure to the U.S. Senate where support is split.

Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie reminded his colleagues that an oath was taken to the Constitution and not to the WTO.

Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, a Republican from Kansas said repealing COOL is the best way to protect the American economy from retaliatory tariffs.

Tell us your thoughts about the House of Representatives voting to repeal COOL. What do you think will happen when the bill is in front of the Senate?

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.