LEMOYNE, Pa. — A trip to the grocery store can be overwhelming for many Americans, as they try to find the healthiest and highest quality products they can afford.
Shoppers often look to labels to help make their decisions easier, but some stickers in the meat section may be misleading.
"I don't know if it's confusing, or it could be more so deceiving," said Todd Keys, the director of meat operations at Karns Foods.
He said poultry, beef, pork and eggs claiming to be products of the USA, don't necessarily have to be.
"For example, beef could've been raised or harvested in the United States, but then it could've been harvested processed in a different country, but yet that claim could still be made on the packaging, 'product or made in the USA,'" Keys said.
It's the subject of a new proposal from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The USDA wants to change the rules to make sure all items using the 'Product of USA' label are actually coming from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the U.S.
Beef Producer and Pa. Cattlemen's Association Board Member Frank Stoltzfus said the current label is hurting farmers.
"It really does go against our profitability to have somebody else be able to claim that it's a product of the United States, born, raised and processed in the U.S. when it really isn't," Stoltzfus said.
The USDA claims it conducted a comprehensive review that found the current 'Product of USA' label standards need to be changed, making it clear to consumers exactly what they're buying.
Stoltzfus said it would be a step in the right direction, but he still has questions.
"What we're not sure of, is how the verification process is going to work so that we are assured that when it has that label on it, it was produced, processed and is going to be consumed by people here in the United States," Stoltzfus said.
The USDA said the potential change will be open for public comment for 60 days.