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The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend its regulations to define the conditions under which the labeling of products can bear voluntary statements indicating that the product is of United States (U.S.) origin, such as Product of USA or Made in the USA.

Statement of Need:

In 2018 and 2019, FSIS received two petitions requesting that it change its policy regarding the labeling of meat products to indicate U.S. origin. After considering the petitions and the public comments submitted in response to them, FSIS concluded that adherence to the current labeling policy guidance may be causing confusion in the marketplace with respect to certain imported products and that the current labeling policy may no longer meet consumer expectations of what the Product of USA claim signifies. In 2021, FSIS received another petition related to its Product of USA policy. The Agency wants to ensure that any changes to its current policy are accomplished by an open and transparent process. Therefore, FSIS commissioned a consumer survey and decided that, instead of changing the Policy Book entry, it would initiate rulemaking to define the conditions under which the labeling of FSIS-regulated products would be permitted to bear voluntary statements indicating that the product is of U.S. origin.

Summary of the Legal Basis:

Under the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) (21 U.S.C. 601-695, at 607), the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) (21 U.S.C. 451-470, at 457), and the Egg Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 1031-1056, at 1036) (the Acts), the labels of meat, poultry, and egg products must be approved by the Secretary of Agriculture, who has delegated this authority to FSIS, before these products can enter commerce. The Acts prohibit the sale or offer for sale by any person, firm, or corporation of any article in commerce under any name or other marking or labeling that is false or misleading or in any container of a misleading form or size (21 U.S.C. 607(d); 21 U.S.C. 457(c)). The Acts also prohibit the distribution in commerce of meat or poultry products that are adulterated or misbranded. The FMIA and PPIA give FSIS broad authority to promulgate such rules and regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of the Acts (21 U.S.C. 621 and 463(b)).

Alternatives:

FSIS has considered the current labeling guidance and the alternatives proposed in the two petitions: 1) to amend the FSIS Policy Book to state that FSIS-regulated products may be labeled as Product of USA only if significant ingredients are of domestic origin and; 2) to amend the FSIS Policy Book to provide that any FSIS regulated product labeled as Made in the USA, Product of the USA, USA Beef or in any other manner that suggests that the origin is the United States, be derived from animals that have been born, raised, and slaughtered in the United States. FSIS is conducting a comprehensive review of origin labeling claims and conducting a consumer perception survey pursuant to developing the proposed regulations.

Anticipated Costs and Benefits:

Establishments may incur costs associated with voluntarily changing their labels as a result of any revised Product of USA labeling claim definition. This proposed rule is expected to benefit consumers as well as producers by providing them more specific information on what Product of USA means for FSIS-regulated products. 

Risks:

N/A