On the recordApril 24, 2002
I have melon-growers in my district. If we had country-of-origin labeling then, consumers would have known the source of the contaminated melons. They were foreign and not domestic. Our market would not have been disrupted, perfectly good produce would not have been thrown out, and domestic growers would have been protected. I want to address also the argument that the provision will be costly. Well, as has been mentioned, Florida has had a similar law for more than 20 years. When I walk into the grocery store, there is a sign that is placed to indicate the origin of the produce. It looks like it has been cut out of a piece of construction paper, printed, and put up. The Florida Department of Agriculture has indicated that it costs supermarkets $5 to $10 per store a week to comply with that law. It does not seem too costly to me that we could let our folks at home know the origin of our fruits and vegetables.
Source
govinfo.gov
