Raw Meat Labels Required

Effective yesterday, packages of raw meat and poultry are now required to carry nutrition fact labels listing the product’s fat, sodium, and calorie content. Under the new rule, announced yesterday by officials at the US Department of Agriculture, butcher counters at large grocery chains will be required to display a poster bearing their products’ nutritional information, and meat companies will be required to disclose the fat percentage of products advertised as “lean.” Elisabeth A. Hagen, the USDA’s under-secretary for food safety, says the change reflects the growing public demand for nutritional information, as consumers become savvier about dietary health. “You can’t make the best choices if you don’t have the right information,” she says.