I commend Senator Cochran for his hard work in putting together this bill to fund our nation's agricultural and nutrition programs and to provide emergency assistance to America's farmers in this difficult year. I am disappointed, however, that some provisions that would have benefitted our nation's family ranchers who are also suffering from low commodity prices were dropped from the final Conference Report. In particular, I am disappointed that the amendment to require the labeling of imported meat was dropped from the final package. I strongly believe that we need to require foreign meat products to be clearly labeled as such. I support free trade, but in order to have free trade you need to have full disclosure.
American consumers have a right to know if the meat they are buying has been produced in our nation.
American stockgrowers have a strong record of producing top quality products, and the American consumer should have the ability to identify these top quality products in the grocery store. I am also disappointed that the amendment to establish a price reporting pilot project was dropped. Many of my constituents who are family ranchers are very concerned about the current state of the packing industry, notably the increase in packer concentration. I share their concerns. In addition, I think we need to add fairness to our meat inspection programs by allowing state-inspected meat to move across state lines.