Thread: WTO: US Country-of-Origin Food Labeling Rules Illegal

US Country-of-Origin Food Labeling Rules Illegal, WTO Says

Friday, 18 Nov 2011 12:24 PM

U.S. country-of-origin labelling provisions violate global trade rules and unjustly harm agricultural commerce, World Trade Organization judges ruled, backing complaints by Canada and Mexico.

The U.S. requires food processors to identify the countries from which cattle, hogs and some fresh produce originate. Canada and Mexico argue that the provisions impose unfair costs on their exports, reducing their competitiveness. Judges agreed that the policies meant beef and pork from Canada and Mexico were treated less favorably than the same U.S. products.

Judges recommended in their 215-page report on the Geneva- based WTO’s website that the U.S. be told “to bring the inconsistent measures into conformity with its obligations.â€

People will not buy Mexican produce or chicken / sea food from Asia ... they will get rid of this law so you HAVE to buy food from the Globalist Countrys

The Source of Food Is None of Your Business, Says WTO.

20 November 2011

Do you want to know what country produced the food you eat? Too bad, says the World Trade Organization (WTO). That’s a barrier to free trade, so you don’t get to know.

The US instituted a labeling law requiring that all foods’ country of origin be on the label; it was part of the 2008 Farm Bill. Canada and Mexico complained to the WTO, saying that it would discourage food imports. It took three years, but the WTO decided that labeling food with its country of origin is a “technical barrier to tradeâ€

People will not buy Mexican produce or chicken / sea food from Asia ... they will get rid of this law so you HAVE to buy food from the Globalist Countrys

I agree. I am offended that the WTO can determine that our labling laws are "illegal".

The WTO doesn't make the laws in this country and if our If the Congress bows down to the WTO- shame on them and they need a new job.

The job of government is to protect the people, not the WTO.

We should just get out of The WTO. Another interesting issue is GTIN numbers.

My sister works for an Indian pharmaceutical company in NJ and many companies such a Target, Shoprite, Walgreens, Kroger, Super Value ect.. are demanding they have GTIN numbers. The drugstore chains and supermarkets are asking for GTIN bar codes or they won't do business with them.


GTIN Global Trade Item Number

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Trade_Item_Number

Comparison of UPC, EAN and GTIN

The Universal Product Code, UPC, has been a dominant product identification standard in North America since it was established in the 1970s. It is a 12 digit code, unique to a product, which allows it to be scanned and read in virtually any major retail establishment. An 8 digit "zero-compressed" version is available for items which are too small to allow a 12 digit version to be printed.

The European Article Number, EAN, is an expanded UPC with 13 digits, the first three are the country code. It is widely used throughout the rest of the world. A UPC formed in the United States can be transformed into an EAN by prefixing it with a zero.

The Global Trade Item Number, GTIN-14, expands to a 14th digit with the new digit providing a level of packing. An example of usage would be for a carton containing identical items. It could be identified with a GTIN carton level indicator.[1]