A pair of associations representing US cattle interests praised the US Department of Agriculture’s final rule regarding use of the “Product of USA” label claim.

US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the finalization of the rule on March 11, with the goal of aligning the voluntary “Product of USA” label claim with consumer understanding of what the claim means.

“This final rule will ensure that when consumers see ‘Product of USA’ they can trust the authenticity of that label and know that every step involved, from birth to processing, was done here in America,” Vilsack said.

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Executive Director of Government Affairs Kent Bacus said NCBA will focus on ensuring that USDA’s final rule on “Product of USA” label claims results in the opportunity for producer premiums while remaining trade compliant.

“NCBA has been committed to finding solutions to this problem ever since a producer-led NCBA working group raised the alarm, years ago, that imported beef could be mislabeled as a Product of the USA incorrectly at the end of the supply chain,” Bacus said. “We appreciate USDA’s effort to address this loophole.”

The United States Cattlemen’s Association said the final rule follows a request made by the USCA in a petition for rulemaking submitted to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service in 2019.

“This announcement takes the necessary steps to bring back truth in labeling,” USCA’s Director Emeritus Leo McDonnell said. “Consumers will no longer be misinformed when purchasing meat that is labeled as ‘Product of the USA.’ It is rewarding to see this department move in the right direction.”

Starting in 2017, McDonnell led a fundraising effort of cattle producers from across the US that initiated federal rulemaking to close the loophole created by the 2015 repeal of mandatory country of origin labeling.

USCA President Justin Tupper said that the association’s 2019 petition for rulemaking to FSIS called out the practice of applying "Product of USA" and "Made in the USA" labeling claims on beef products that the food safety agency itself said could have come from other countries.

“USCA is thrilled that the final rule finally closes this loophole by accurately defining what these voluntary origin claims mean,” Tupper said. “If it says ‘Made in the USA,’ then it should be from cattle that have only known USA soil. Consumers have the right to know where their food comes from, full stop.”

USDA’s final “Product of USA” rule allows the voluntary “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” label claim to be used on meat, poultry and egg products only when they are derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the US. The rule aims to prohibit misleading country of origin labeling.

Under the final rule, the “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” label claim will remain voluntary and eligible for generic label approval, meaning it would not need to be preapproved by FSIS before it can be used on regulated product, The rule requires the establishment to maintain documentation to support the “Made in the USA” claim.

The final rule also allows the use of other voluntary US-origin claims on meat, poultry and egg products sold in the marketplace. These claims will need to include a description on the package of the preparation and processing steps that occurred in the US upon which the claim is made.