Thanks to "kibbles 'n bits of poison" Chinese food scares, a labeling law stalled since its passage five years ago may finally take effect.
The Country of Origin Labeling Law requires meat and perishable foods to carry labels saying where they're from. It doesn't seem like a terribly onerous burden -- indeed, one might say that knowing where your food comes from is a common-sense part of civilized life -- but grocery stores and the meatpacking industry refused to cooperate.
On their side, reports the Associated Press, were Republican -- especially Texan -- lawmakers, who repeatedly delayed the law's implementation. But with a Democratic majority and a nation suddenly concerned about the origins of their food, that's about to change.
Ironically, the law would actually be good for the American livestock industry. Among its most ardent proponents was Alaskan senator and environmental grinch Ted Stevens, who understood that labeling Alaskan seafood was a way of promoting it -- and the same goes for other
American meats.
Related Wired coverage of the fight over biotech food and drink labeling here and here. The bottom line: some people think you don't have a right to know where your food comes from. But the law won't always be on their side.
Food-labeling effort gains new momentum [Associated Press]
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Image: redjar*
