REGINA – The Saskatchewan government is set to raise country of origin labelling (COOL) with U.S. meat packers.
Agriculture Minster Lyle Stewart will raise the government’s concerns when he attends the North American Meat Association’s conference in Chicago on Monday.
“We are extremely disappointed the U.S. federal government refused to change their position on COOL, which is clearly a violation of their trade obligations,” said Stewart in a release.
“We are committed to standing up for our producers and working with our partners to resolve this issue.”
The World Trade Organization initially ruled the U.S. was in violation of their trade obligations to both Canada and Mexico.
The U.S. then made changes to COOL which the Saskatchewan government says adds costs to the process by requiring additional segregation of foreign animals.
Resolutions have been passed at the Pacific Northwest Economic Region Summit and the State Agriculture and Rural Leaders conference calling on the U.S. to change their COOL legislation.
It was also discussed at the recent Tri-National Agriculture Accord in Saskatoon where delegates from the three countries agreed to work together to find a workable solution.
COOL legislation requires country of original labels be placed on meat products sold in the United States.
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