WASHINGTON, D.C. – USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins recently announced the official launch of a national public awareness campaign to inform meat, poultry and egg producers of the “Product of USA” voluntary labeling standard, which went into effect Jan. 1, and increases consumer understanding of what the label means, the agency said.

“Our great patriot ranchers and producers grow, raise, and harvest the world’s safest, most affordable, and abundant food supply,” Rollins said on National Ag Day, March 24 in Washington, D.C. “American consumers want to support America by buying American, and this label will strengthen our food supply chain through transparency, fairness, and trust.

“This new standard policy ensures producers who invest in a fully American supply chain can compete fairly, and it gives consumers the confidence they deserve about the food they bring home,” she added.

Under this standard, the USDA said the Product of USA label is reserved exclusively for meat, poultry and egg products from animals that were born, raised, harvested and processed in the United States.

The USDA said the standard, however, is voluntary, but companies using it must meet this transparent and verifiable requirement, which the USDA added, ends the prior practice that allowed imported products to carry the standard after minimal processing, and strengthens consumer confidence by aligning with what Americans expect and demand.

But unlike the Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL), which was largely repealed for beef and pork in 2015, the Product of USA label aims to prevent consumer deception by strengthening the rules for voluntary origin claims, rather than requiring them for all products, the agency said.

Andrew P. Griffith, University of Tennessee professor of agricultural and resource economics, told Farm World, “Of course, MCOOL was deemed unlawful by the World Trade Organization due to other trade agreements with Mexico and Canada (NAFTA, USMCA). Thus, in 2024, an alternative was Product of the USA.”

He said, “This does not require anyone to do anything; it simply makes it unlawful for an entity to label a product Product of the USA if it was not born, raised and harvested in the United States. Thus, it does not mandate something be done, but keeps an entity from using misleading labeling.”

He added, “The Product of the USA will still have costs associated with traceability, but an individual company can decide if it is worth labeling this way, based on what consumers are willing to pay.”

Philip Nelson, Illinois Farm Bureau president, told Farm World, “Illinois Farm Bureau appreciates the USDA’s efforts to bring awareness to the voluntary Product of USA label, which consumers may soon see at the grocery stores.

“American families are increasingly interested in understanding where their food comes from, and this label will not only serve to provide more transparency regarding our food chain, but confidence that the meat, poultry and egg products they purchase were born, raised, harvested and processed in the United States.”

Justin Tupper, U.S. Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) president, said, “We look forward to partnering with the USDA on this effort, and ensuring consumers across the country understand exactly what this label means. While the USCA will continue to push for mandatory labeling, this voluntary label will work to restore trust in labels that consumers rely on every day.”