WASHINGTON, D.C. — A World Trade Organization compliance panel announced Oct. 20 that the USDA Country-of-Origin-Labeling (COOL) revision of 2013 violates global rules of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

The WTO ruling found the COOL rules reduced competitive opportunities for imported livestock, like imported feeder calves fed in the U.S. That is because the COOL rule "necessitates increased segregation of meat and livestock according to origin; entails a higher recordkeeping burden; and increases the original COOL measure’s incentive to choose domestic over imported livestock." The WTO panel also found the U.S. rule failed to meet its standards for "legitimate regulatory distinctions."

The ruling was the result of a challenge to the USDA rule by Canada and Mexico. "In light of today’s ruling, Canada calls upon the U.S. to enact legislative change to eliminate COOL’s discriminatory treatment against Canadian hogs and cattle," Canada’s trade and agriculture ministers said in a joint statement.

Responding to the ruling, agriculture and meat interests opposing COOL urged legislative action to replace the current standards. "NCBA has maintained that there is no regulatory fix to bring the COOL rule into compliance with our WTO obligations or that will satisfy our top trading partners," said National Cattlemen’s Beef Assoc. President Bob McCan. "We look forward to working with Congress to find a permanent solution to this issue, avoiding retaliation against not only beef, but a host of U.S. products," he said, alluding to tariffs Canada has proposed if the U.S. does not fix COOL standards.

But others say USDA can fix COOL.

"Under the guidance of USDA, any changes to COOL to ensure full compliance with today’s decision should be able to be made administratively, while maintaining the integrity of COOL labels," said Roger Johnson, National Farmers Union president. While the meat industry largely opposes COOL, Johnson said, public opinion polls find U.S. consumer support for COOL label standards.

A Consumer Reports poll conducted in April found 92 percent of respondents wanting to know their meat’s country of origin, with 57 percent desiring to know both where the animal was born/raised and where it was slaughtered.

"We are confident that given that level of support, Congress will reject all heavy-handed attempts to make legislative changes to this important labeling law," Johnson said.

Political response to the ruling was also split. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) indicated it may be time for a legislative fix.

"After two negative findings from the WTO, with the second WTO ruling saying that the revised rule from the U.S. Department of Agriculture was actually worse than the original rule, it’s likely time for Congress to go back to the drawing board," Grassley said.

But Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) urged the U.S. to appeal the WTO decision. "Accurate information is essential in a competitive, free market, and COOL provides consumers with essential information about the origin of their food," DeLauro said. "If this ruling stands, U.S. ranchers will not be able to differentiate their products with a U.S. label and consumers will not have the information they need at the point of purchase."

An appeal to the WTO ruling is likely, and final action on that appeal could take an undefined time period. In the meantime, current COOL labeling regulations will require meat sold in the U.S. to be labeled with where the animal was born, raised and slaughtered.