GCCA Joins Other Food and Agriculture Associations in Expressing Concerns With The Country of Origin Labeling Online Act (COOL Act)

On Wednesday, May 26, 2021, GCCA joined other food and agriculture associations in sending a letter to Democratic leadership expressing concerns with the Country of Origin Labeling Online Act (COOL Act), an amendment in the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, (S. 1260) that would require retailers and sellers to include country of origin information in product descriptions on their websites. As written, the COOL Act would be unworkable for food retailers, could trigger potential retaliatory tariffs on an array of products, and could expand the scope of origin labeling to products offered on the internet not subject to the mandatory COOL statute administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). As an alternative, the coalition letter expresses support for Senator Boozman’s (R-AR) amendment to the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, which would exempt covered commodities and meat and poultry products from the online COOL mandate.

Read more about the U.S. Innovative and Competition Act HERE.

Read the coalition letter HERE.