WASHINGTON — A meat industry lawsuit that claimed federal labeling rules violated constitutional right to free speech has been dismissed.
The industry sued the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 2013 over new rules that required product packages to list the individual countries where animals were born, raised and slaughtered.
That First Amendment challenge failed at the federal district court and appeals court levels. The Feb. 9 notice of dismissal ends the suit. It leaves the remaining issues in the case to the World Trade Organization. The WTO has said that the labeling rules place an unfair burden on meat producers in Canada and Mexico.
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