Washington, D.C. – 5 February, 2015
Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz concluded a series of meetings in Washington, DC, today where he reiterated Canada’s position on U.S. Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) to influential newly elected U.S. House and Senate members.
Minister Ritz held bilateral discussions with key representatives from the House and Senate Agriculture Committees. In the meetings, Minister Ritz called for a legislative fix to COOL, and reinforced that mandatory COOL continues to significantly disrupt the North American supply chain, create unpredictability in the market, and impose additional costs on producers on both sides of the border.
While in Washington, DC, Minister Ritz led a delegation which included the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, the Canadian Pork Council, and the Canadian Meat Council. They participated in roundtable meetings with the COOL Reform Coalition and the Barnyard Coalition. During the discussions, Minister Ritz expressed support for each industry coalition’s efforts to advocate for a legislative fix to COOL discrimination.
Canada will continue to fully assert its rights to achieve a fair resolution on COOL, including seeking authorization to implement retaliatory measures on U.S. agricultural and non-agricultural products if and as necessary.
Jeff English
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Gerry Ritz
613-773-1059
Media Relations
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
613-773-7972
1-866-345-7972
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