U.S. COOL proposal unlikely to affect Canadian beef

Proposed American legislation could see distributors fined for meat that is improperly labelled as “Made in the USA,” but industry experts north of the border say it is unlikely to pass muster.

The bill would set out processor fines of $5,000 per pound of beef that doesn’t meet label standards.

Why it matters: A proposed new version of country of origin labelling in the U.S. is being watched carefully by Canada’s beef sector.

COOL, or country of origin labelling, surged back into the headlines this year, eight years after the U.S.’s mandatory COOL system was repealed in 2015 after a bitter trade dispute between the U.S., Canada and Mexico.