The beef import debate rolls on

An article in the Jan 8, 2025, issue of the Cowboy State Daily outlined proposed state legislation that would mandate “Made in the USA” labeling on all American beef products sold in Wyoming. The bill sponsored by state Sen. Cheri Steinmetz, R-Lingle, is designed to make it clear to Cowboy State consumers when they’re buying non-American beef.

Steinmetz’s bill is not an uncommon proposal and blends two components of the import argument that the U.S. beef industry has wrestled with for 30+ years:

Imported beef is unsafe and unwholesome.

Imported beef hurts the ranching economy.

In the article, some assumptions are presented. One of which is: "Imported beef is processed according to the food safety standards of the country it is in, which can be much lower than those in America, before being shipped halfway around the world to U.S. supermarkets and restaurants."

The other assumption in the article states: “The foreign presence in the U.S. beef market generally lowers prices by increasing supply.”

While the two assumptions are intertwined and are worthy of continued debate and scrutiny, let’s focus for now on the risks associated with importing beef—and leave the economic debate for another time.

The U.S. sets the standard

By law USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) is responsible for assuring imported meat is safe, wholesome, unadulterated, and properly labeled and packaged under inspection systems "equal to" those in the U.S. It’s safe to say that the U.S. sets the global standard for beef safety.

Only countries that can demonstrate equivalent safety inspection systems are eligible to export to the U.S. It’s important to note that most other importing countries, like those in the EU, Asia, and the Middle East hold exporters to equivalency measures that mirror those set by USDA.

The FSIS maintains an Import & Export Library that identifies the products each export-certified plant in each equivalent country is eligible to export to the U.S. If an exporting entity were to try and bypass the system by placing substandard products into commerce, both the exporter and the importer face intensified inspection or expulsion from the export markets.