A Federal Court Judge in New Mexico has permanently dismissed a pair of lawsuits against the Big 4 meat packers. Both of the suits that were combined into one court action alleged that labeling of beef products Product of the USA misleads consumers because the label is accepted even on foreign meat. South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association President Eric Jennings isn’t sure how far reaching this decision will be although that is a definite truth in labeling problem that needs to be addressed.
He says it’s a tough problem to solve and isn’t easy to fix because of world trade rules.
Jennings says there have been some legislative attempts made to fix the Product of the USA label issue but each time it runs into the World Trade problem.
The Federal Judge in New Mexico ruled in favor of the defendants, JBS USA, Cargill Meat Solutions, Tyson Foods Incorporated and National Beef Packing Company saying federal law super cedes New Mexico state laws.
