South Dakota Senator John Thune went to the Senate floor Thursday and outlined his farm bill priorities. Thune said crop insurance is the cornerstone of the farm safety net and must be maintained. Thune has introduced legislation requiring the U.S. trade representative to develop a WTO-compliant country-of-origin labeling law for beef. “Under our current system, beef that is neither born nor raised in the United States but is simply finished here can be labeled product of the United States even if the only American thing about the beef is the plastic that it’s wrapped in,” said Thune. “That is unfair to American cattle producers and misleading to consumers.” Thune wants the new farm bill to close the labeling loophole.
