Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told DTN it may be January before the United States files an appeal of the World Trade Organization ruling against U.S. country-of-origin meat labels. During an interview, Vilsack said WTO has a backlog of appeals and has signaled it cannot handle more appeals at the moment. “So we have some time in which to make that decision” whether to appeal, Vilsack said, according to DTN.
Vilsack said the U.S. trade representative’s office was weighing whether to appeal. He also said he has asked USDA staff to see if there is a way to modify the labels that would comply with U.S. law and the WTO rulings against them.