Where's the (Kobe) Beef?

Larry Olmstead has a fascinating 3 part series in Forbes that looks at the authenticity of Kobe beef and its availability outside of Japan.  It is enlightening and I urge you to read all three parts to get a true understanding about how labeling works.  While he is examining the U.S. labeling laws, much of what he says regarding Kobe Beef does apply to Canada, as well: if you think you have eaten Kobe Beef here, you are probably mistaken, for all the same reasons.  I have had, what was labeled as, Kobe hot dogs and, after reading the article, now realize that they probably were most definitely not Kobe. 

Olmstead discusses the international labeling treaties and the fact that the U.S. has never signed on to those treaties (just as they have not signed on to many international treaties).  Olmstead makes the case that it is hypocrisy on the part of the U.S. when they have strong armed many nations, including Canada, to adopt draconian and creativity-stemming intellectual property laws to protect the recording, motion picture and publishing industries that are monopolized by the U.S. (it is interesting that the U.S. has still not passed their own legislation on this issue) Olmstead writes:

This is not an oversight, as in, “hey, we forgot to regulate the labeling of Kobe beef.” This is part of a pattern of deliberate actions going back well over a century on the part of the Federal government to actively ignore foreign trademarks and intellectual property claims in order to support domestic industries. It has very much been done on purpose, and continues to be done on purpose, at the expense of the American consumer (and foreign producers). It is also stunningly hypocritical, and flies directly in the face of the government’s deep pocketed attempts to combat piracy in the arenas of music, film, technology, and software.

 Many of the treaties discussed in the article have been ratified by Canada and products such as Champagne are protected here - if a sparkling wine is labeled Champagne it must come from the French appellation of Champagne.  But, not all products are protected in Canada, either, and we do a pretty good job on hypocrisy ourselves, at times.  Olmstead's point that allowing companies here to make money off the efforts of more hard working producers as unfair to those producers AND to the consumers is a valid criticism of governments that refuse to enact safeguards.  And, in Canada, the problem is about to become much worse as the government has announced plans to stop investigating some claims, cutting of inspectors and a general malaise toward consumer protection.  More and more, consumers in Canada and the U.S. are being left to their own devices in a libertarian controlled market that uses the refrain "caveat emptor" as some kind of defense for fraud. 

Canadians seem to be too generous to those who have poisoned our food and water supplies over the years - many believe the Koebels got off relatively easy in Walkerton, let alone the government, Maple Leaf Meats has done ok since the listeria outbreak and the beef industry here never really suffered in the domestic market as a result of mad cow outbreak.  It seems that the more our food supply is condensed in the hands of a few multinationals the less testing and enforcement our government is willing to invest.  It is time we all demanded stricter labeling regulations, more thorough inspections and the attitude of "caveat venditor" (a notion I would argue is as much a part of the libertarian's patron saint Adam Smith's teachings) should be the rallying cry of concerned consumers everywhere.  In the meantime, a healthy skepticism toward marketing claims, be they big business or small, would go a long way in preventing others from stuffing their pockets with your hard earned money.  The next time I see a retailer selling Kobe Beef I know I will be having an interesting conversation with them.  I will simply ask to see the serial number provided with each cut of meat sold from Kobe Japan and watch with delight as they squirm a little.