WASHINGTON - Lawmakers from both parties waged a full-fledged assault Wednesday on one paragraph of a three-thousand-page spending bill that granted a Georgia poultry farm's request to label meat organic even if the animals don't eat certified organic feed.
Representative Nathan Deal got the provision inserted on behalf of Baldwin-based Fieldale Farms, a major employer in his North Georgia district. But now, just days after it became law, congressional critics are determined to eliminate what they're calling a special interest loophole -- and they seem to have the backing of the Bush administration.
Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, said ``We're not going to let ten lines in a three-thousand-page appropriations bill undermine 12 years of hard work.''
Leahy is a longtime proponent of strict ``organic'' labeling standards, who today introduced legislation to strip the loophole from the law books.
Opponents have blasted Deal's secrecy in getting the measure approved, even questioning whether the move was payback for a few thousand dollars in campaign contributions he received from Fieldale employees. Deal, who represents the nation's largest poultry-producing district, called the charge ``absurd.''
Deal said, ``Sure, I have friends in the industry, some who grow organic poultry, some who don't. Aybody who makes that assertion better be very careful.''
Thursday
September 4th, 2025
3:07PM
