WASHINGTON, June 13, 2013 – Proposed
Canadian and Mexican retaliatory measures against the United States for its
recently announced country-of-origin labeling (COOL) rules would be “cataclysmic”
for the pork industry, National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) officials said
during a teleconference today.
“If we were
to be retaliated against, if we were to lose either of those (Canadian or
Mexican) markets, words like ‘cataclysmic’ come to mind,” Nick Giordano, NPPC’s
counsel for international trade, said during the media call.
Giordano pledged NPPC would “do everything in our
power” to ensure the United States is in compliance with WTO rules, but the
trade organization stresses a resolution may take some time.
If Canada or Mexico does decide to pursue a case with
the international trade body, “under ideal conditions, it takes six months,” Giordano
said. But the process could be resolved “perhaps as long as a year from now.”
In the meantime, processors have six months to
bring their facilities into compliance with the congressionally mandated COOL
laws. NPPC hopes the administration will allow the industry additional time so
that a WTO ruling would not force another label change.
Changing labels before the matter is decided by
WTO “makes no sense,” Giordano said. "It’s like an agency changing their
practice if it’s under court appeal.”
NPPC says domestic and international lawyers
believe Canada and Mexico could win a WTO challenge should COOL rules come
before the international court.
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