"The Meat Promotion Coalition has been formed in the office of Washington's top agriculture (public affairs) / lobby firm, Lesher & Russell [3]," reports O'Dwyer's. Coalition members include Tyson Foods, Hormel Foods, Cargill, the National Catttlemen's Beef Association [4], National Pork Producers, American Meat Institute, National Meat Association, and American Farm Bureau Federation. The coalition is pushing for voluntary country-of-origin meat labeling, as opposed to the mandatory labeling called for by federal agriculture law, now slated to be implemented by 2006. Country-of-origin labeling, which industry groups claim would be costly, has received increased attention due to mad cow disease [5].