USDA this week finalized a rule updating its “Product of USA” labeling claims for meat and poultry products.
The rule requires that labels bearing “Product of USA” can only be used for products that are born, raised, slaughtered, and processed in the United States.
The rule only addresses voluntary “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” labeling claims and does not impact USDA’s mandatory country-of-origin labeling for poultry products. USDA does not maintain mandatory country-of-origin labeling claims for other types of meat products.
The new, voluntary “Product of USA” or “Made in the USA” labels will also remain eligible for generic label approval, meaning they would not need to be pre-approved by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) before they can be used on regulated products. Still, the establishment would need Inspection Serv to maintain documentation on file to support the claim.
The final rule also allows the use of other voluntary claims of U.S. origin on meat, poultry, and egg products sold in the marketplace. These claims will need to include a description of the package of the preparation and processing steps that occurred in the United States upon which the claim is made.
USDA has also published updated labeling guidance on U.S.-origin label claims, which provides examples of claims and the types of documentation that establishments may maintain to support their claims.
The labeling guidance can be found here.
Establishments voluntarily using a claim subject to the final rule must comply with the new regulatory requirements by January 1, 2026.
