New rules will let millions of Americans know where more of their food comes from. The law is known as COOL -- Country of Origin Labeling(标签).
American congress first passed the law in 2002. Stores have had to label seafood by country of origin since 2005. But industry pressure delayed other requirements until last week.
Products that must now be labeled include fresh fruits and vegetables, muscle meats and some kinds of nuts. But the rules are complex, and many foods are not included. For example, organ meats are free to be labeled. So are processed foods, including cooked or smoked foods.
The same food may sometimes have to be labeled and other times not. Fresh or frozen peas, for example, have to be labeled but not canned peas. Foods that are mixed with other foods are also excluded. Mixed nuts, for example, do not need to be labeled. The same is true of a salad mix that contains different things like lettuce and carrots. Or a fruit cup that combines different fruits. Also, the law doesn’t include restaurants and other food service organizations. Department of Agriculture officials say the law is really meant for larger grocery stores.
The United States has imported more and more food in recent years to save money and expand choices. Country-of-origin labeling has become more common lately but has still been limited in many stores.
Food safety is one reason why some shoppers pay close attention to where foods came from. For example, when a large number of people recently got sick from salmonella(沙门菌病), officials blamed peppers from Mexico. Yet the last big food scare involved spinach grown in California. But labeling is also a way for people to know they are getting what they want. Some want to buy local foods or foods from a particular country.
The country-of-origin labeling law gives stores 30 days to correct any violations(违反) that are found. Stores and suppliers that are found to be deliberately violating the law could be fined 1,000 dollars per violation. Federal inspectors are not to take action to enforce the law for six months to give time for an education campaign.
Some food safety activists say they are generally pleased with the law. They call it a good step that will give people more useful information.
小题1:Why has more and more food been imported to the United States in recent years?
A．It is economical and provides people with more choices.
B．Foreign food is of higher quality than native food.
C．Americans need more and more food recently.
D．The United States is short of food supply.小题2:Consumers are more concerned about where foods come from because________.
A．they are curious about the origin of the food.
B．most of them are particular about the tastes
C．they are concerned about food safety
D．most of them are food safety activists小题3:The new rules of the country-of-origin labeling law will come into effect________.
A．right now
B．in a month
C．in three months
D．in half a year小题4:Which of the following can be inferred from the text?
A．Store owners are most likely to be the supporters of the law.
B．The government of America will possibly forbid importing peppers from Mexico.
C．Federal inspectors couldn’t take measures to enforce the law.
D．Most Americans prefer imported vegetables to the vegetables grown in local places.
