Was Country of Origin Labeling wasted effort?

Head to the grocery store, and you may see some new signs and labels today.

That's because Country of Origin Labeling has finally gone into effect.

About time, you say.

We've heard all of the horror stories about tainted products from China, from toys contaminated by lead paint to pet food and baby formula contaminated by an industrial plastic chemical designed to fool protein tests.

The new regulation should stop all that, right?

Sorry, no.

While most retailers and importers do their best to assure they're delivering safe products, Country of Origin Labeling -- COOL -- has nothing to do with food safety.

It's purely a marketing effort, according to Lloyd Day of the USDA agricultural Marketing Service.

Authorized in the 2002 Farm Bill but taking until today to clear the regulatory process, the law requires special labeling indicating the country that is the source of most fresh meats and fresh and frozen vegetables. Because the rules were published only last month, retailers actually have a six-month grace period to put the labels and signs in place.

There are many exceptions, however -- too many, according to people like the National Farmers Union, which is protesting provisions of the beef labeling.

While poultry will be labeled "Product of the U.S.," beef may be labeled "Product of U.S., Canada, Mexico." That's because while animals may have been fattened in feedlots, slaughtered and processed in American plants, they may have been born in Mexico or Canada.

That loophole, opponents say, negates much of the purpose of the label. Consumers who might be fearful of mad cow disease will find no comfort there.

Also exempt are processed foods such as coated and cooked chicken pieces and roasted peanuts, but not raw peanuts. And, while frozen carrots or peas must carry the COOL label, mixed peas and carrots do not, as they are considered to be processed.

The USDA estimates the new labeling will cost the food industry $2.5 billion to implement. We all know who will wind up bearing that cost.

Marketing efforts like the ones that created branded Nebraska beef can backfire if local meatpackers are forced to recall tons of meat, which they have.

If producers like the National Farmers Union aren't happy with it as a marketing tool, however, and if consumers will mistakenly depend on it as a measure of food safety, which they will, we have to wonder, what good is it?

Consumers would be better off if the food industry could have passed along the $2.5 billion it would have saved if country of origin labeling would never have happened.