[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 102 (Wednesday, September 6, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Page S8105]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. FEINGOLD:
  S. 3005. A bill to require country origin labeling of all forms of 
ginseng; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.


                 ginseng truth in labeling act of 2000

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a package of 
legislation (S. 3005 and S. Res. 348) that addresses the increased 
amount of smuggled and mis-labeled ginseng entering this country.
  This legislation provides for some common sense reforms that would 
require country-of-origin labeling for ginseng products, and express 
the Sense of the Senate that customs should put a stop to the flow of 
smuggled ginseng into the United States. My legislation will push for 
stricter enforcement of ginseng importation and allow consumers the 
information they need to determine the origin of the ginseng they buy.


                       smuggling-labeling problem

  Mr. President, Chinese and Native American cultures have used ginseng 
for thousands of years for herbal and medicinal purposes.
  In America, ginseng is experiencing a newfound popularity, and I am 
proud to say that my home state of Wisconsin is playing a central role 
in ginseng's resurgence.
  Wisconsin produces 97 percent of the ginseng grown in the United 
States, and 85 percent of the country's ginseng is grown in Marathon 
County.
  The ginseng industry is an economic boon to Marathon County, as well 
as an example of the high quality for which Wisconsin's agriculture 
industry is known.
  Wisconsin ginseng commands a premium price in world markets because 
it is considered to be of the highest quality and because it has a 
lower pesticide and chemical content.
  With a huge market for this high-quality ginseng overseas, and 
growing popularity for the ancient root here at home, Wisconsin's 
ginseng industry should have a prosperous future ahead.
  Unfortunately, the outlook for ginseng farmers is marred by a serious 
problem--smuggled and mislabeled ginseng. Wisconsin ginseng is 
considered so superior to ginseng grown abroad that smugglers will go 
to great lengths to label ginseng grown in Canada or Asia as 
``Wisconsin-grown.''
  Here's how the switch takes place: Smugglers take Asian or Canadian-
grown ginseng and ship it to plants in China, allegedly to have the 
ginseng sorted into various grades.
  While the sorting process is itself a legitimate part of distributing 
ginseng, smugglers often use it as a ruse to switch Wisconsin ginseng 
with the Asian or Canadian ginseng considered inferior by consumers.
  The smugglers know that while Chinese-grown ginseng has a retail 
value of about $5-$6 per pound, while Wisconsin-grown ginseng is valued 
at roughly $16-$20 per pound.
  To make matters even tougher for Wisconsin's ginseng farmers, there 
is no accurate way of testing ginseng to determine where it was grown, 
other than testing for pesticides that are legal in Canada and China 
but are banned in the United States.
  And in some cases, smugglers can even find ways around the pesticide 
tests. A recent ConsumerLab.com study confirmed that much of the 
ginseng sold in the U.S. contained harmful chemicals and metals, such 
as lead and arsenic.
  And that's because the majority of Ginseng sold in the U.S. 
originates from countries with lower pesticide standards, so it's 
vitally important that consumers know which ginseng is really grown in 
Wisconsin


                        consumer/producer impact

  For the sake of ginseng farmers and consumers, the U.S. Senate must 
crack down on smuggled and mislabeled ginseng.
  Without adequate labeling, consumers have no way of knowing the most 
basic information about the ginseng they purchase--where it was grown, 
what quality or grade it is, or whether it contains dangerous 
pesticides.
  The country of origin labeling is a simple but effective way to 
enable consumers to make an informed decision. And putting the U.S. 
Senate on record in support of cracking down on ginseng smuggling is an 
important first step toward putting an end to the illegal ginseng 
trade.
  The lax enforcement of smuggled ginseng also puts our producers on an 
unfair playing field. The mixing of superior Wisconsin ginseng with 
lower quality foreign ginseng root penalizes the grower and eliminates 
the incentive to provide the consumer with a superior product.
  Mr. President, we must give ginseng growers the support they deserve 
by implementing country-of-origin labeling that lets consumers make in 
formed choices about the ginseng that they consume.
  We must ensure when ginseng consumers reach for a quality ginseng 
product--such as Wisconsin grown ginseng--that they are getting the 
real thing, not a cheap imitation.
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