Imported Meat Labeling Act of 1999

Imported Meat Labeling Act of 1999 - Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act to require country of origin (where an animal is raised before slaughter) labeling of imported meat or U.S.-prepared meat food products containing foreign meat.

[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 222 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 222

To amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act to require that imported meat, 
     and meat food products containing imported meat, bear a label 
                   identifying the country of origin.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 6, 1999

Mrs. Chenoweth (for herself, Mr. Pomeroy, Mr. Traficant, Mr. Sessions, 
Mr. Farr of California, Mr. Hunter, Mr. Stump, Mr. Watkins, Mrs. Cubin, 
Mr. McHugh, Mrs. Bono, Mr. Nethercutt, Mr. Herger, Mr. Hill of Montana, 
 Mr. Thune, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, 
Mr. Sanders, Mr. Edwards, Mrs. Emerson, Mr. Pickering, Mr. Souder, Mrs. 
 Thurman, Mr. LaTourette, Mr. Coburn, Mr. Doolittle, Mr. Kucinich, Mr. 
   Regula, Mr. Chambliss, and Mr. Weldon of Florida) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

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                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act to require that imported meat, 
     and meat food products containing imported meat, bear a label 
                   identifying the country of origin.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Imported Meat Labeling Act of 
1999''.

SEC. 2 COUNTRY OF ORIGIN LABELING OF IMPORTED MEAT AND MEAT FOOD 
              PRODUCTS.

    (a) Labeling Required.--Section 1(n) of the Federal Meat Inspection 
Act (21 U.S.C. 601(n)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(13)(A) If it is imported into the United States unless 
        is bears or is accompanied by labeling that identifies the 
        country of origin of the animal that is the source of the 
        imported carcass, part thereof, or meat or is part of the 
        contents of the imported meat food product.
            ``(B) If it is a meat food product prepared in the United 
        States using any carcass, part thereof, or meat imported into 
        the United States unless the meat food product bears or is 
        accompanied by labeling that identifies the country origin of 
        the animal that is the source of the imported carcass, part 
        thereof, or meat.
            ``(C) In this paragraph, the term `country of origin' means 
        the country or countries in which an animal is raised before 
        slaughter.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 1(n) of the Federal Meat 
Inspection Act is amended--
            (1) by striking ``if'' at the beginning of each of 
        paragraphs (1) through (12) and inserting ``If'';
            (2) by striking the semicolon at the end of each of 
        paragraphs (1) through (10) and inserting a period; and
            (3) in paragraph (11), by striking ``; or'' at the end and 
        inserting a period.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.
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