COOL

     The other day at the Grocery Outlet I noticed that all the veggies had the country they were grown in noted on the shelf price tags. I mentioned it to one of the clerks and he acted as though he hadn't noticed. I thought this was just a considerate thing to do so customers would know where their food was coming from. It turns out it is now law.   

     As of September 30,  2008 all agriculturally grown items must be labeled with country of origin. All red meats and foul, fish and shell fish, nuts and perishable agricultural commodities (read fruits and veggies) and ginseng fall into this category.  It is called "Country of Origin Labeling" or COOL for short. Which I think is rather (excuse the pun) cool. Even discount stores that get the cheapest from where ever, will need to reveal if they are getting bell peppers from Mexico, cucumbers from Canada or beef from Brazil (yes, some of that grocery store beef can come from Brazil even though it's inspected by the USDA upon entering the country).

    Although the labeling hardly helps someone trying to support their community by eating locally, at least it narrows it down a bit.  It is the first step to making the average consumer at the average big box super market see where their food is coming from and maybe give it a little thought. Eating locally is hard for a number of reasons and inadequate labeling is one - COOL is at the very least, a place to start.