The debate over mandatory country-of-origin labelling (MCOOL) for beef is back in the United States after the Senate Agriculture Committee approved its version of the 2026 Farm Bill. The bill carries the Thune Amendment, which would require the US Trade Representative and the Department of Agriculture to draw up a World Trade Organization-compliant plan to reinstate MCOOL for beef within a year.

Supporters say the labels would tell shoppers more about the beef they buy. The meat industry says the cost would be paid all along the chain. According to an economic analysis commissioned by the Meat Institute, reinstating MCOOL could add about $835 million a year to beef costs: although the label would apply mainly to retail beef, companies throughout the supply chain would have to segregate cattle and beef to meet tracking and verification requirements, with the paperwork, record-keeping, handling and verification expense that entails.

"Consumers are paying more for beef than ever before. It is the worst time for Congress to interfere with markets, adding costs and bureaucracy to production by mandating how beef should be marketed to consumers," said Meat Institute president and chief executive Julie Anna Potts, who said the institute will keep opposing the provisions as the bill goes to the full Senate.

The trade argument weighs as heavily as the cost one. The cattle and beef industries of the United States, Canada and Mexico work as one integrated North American market, with animals crossing borders for feeding, processing and marketing; in 2025 more than 544,000 cattle were exported from the United States to Canada, many of them re-entering later for processing. Earlier versions of country-of-origin labelling led to trade disputes with both neighbours, and industry leaders warn a return would complicate the trade talks now under way among the three countries.

Research cited by the industry suggests origin is not what drives most beef purchases: consumer studies through Kansas State University's Meat Demand Monitor consistently rank taste, freshness, safety and price higher. The House version of the Farm Bill, passed earlier in 2026, carries no MCOOL provision, so the question will be settled when the two chambers reconcile their bills.

Source: Farms.com