A law, part of the 2002 farm bill, has finally gone into affect which requires food manufacturers to list the country of origin on their foods products. Country of origin labeling, or COOL, is a good tool to use when buying locally grown produce or if you simply want to know where your food is coming from. All fruits and vegetables, including frozen products, must have the country of origin listed on it. If there is no label, the store must tell you on a sign. Raw chicken, beef pork, fish, shellfish and raw nuts all require labeling
There are exceptions: Cut up mixed fruit or any mixed frozen fruits and vegetables do not require a label. Any process foods such as roasted nuts or canned foods will not have to be labeled. Any meat that has special spices/flavorings or is already cooked does not need to be labeled. Turkey in any form does not require labeling.
The law took affect on September 30th and it will take 2-3 weeks for the labels to show up in stores.
