|
Country of Origin Labeling Updates - March, '09 |
FMI and N.G.A. as a member and industry service are providing country of origin labeling guidance for meat, produce and seafood departments to assist in compliance with USDA regulations.
The final country of origin labeling regulation takes effect in 10 days on March 16, 2009. The most important thing you can do is to ensure that your stores identify a country of origin for every covered commodity. To help at store level, attached are three sheets -- one each for the produce, meat and seafood departments -- that break down the store level country of origin labeling requirements. You should review the sheets to make sure that they reflect the instructions to your store personnel. (For example, if all country of origin in your seafood department is displayed on pin tags for bulk displays and scale labels for self-service overwrapped product, we recommend that you modify the sheets accordingly.)
Please note that these sheets do not address recordkeeping. Retailers do have an obligation to keep records (1) to verify the country of origin claim for all covered commodities until they are sold and (2) to be able to identify their suppliers. (More information on recordkeeping requirements can be found on the FMI and NGA websites.) However, the immediate concern is ensuring that country of origin information is available at store level.
Click HERE for the document.
|
