Congressman Valadao Introduces Legislation to Increase Transparency in Agricultural Imports

WASHINGTON – Congressman David Valadao (CA-22) introduced the Rooting Out Mislabeled Agriculture (ROMA) Act alongside Reps. Mike Thompson (CA-04), David Rouzer (NC-07), Jim Costa (CA-20), James Gallagher (CA-01), and Don Davis (NC-01). This bipartisan bill would strengthen efforts to prevent low-quality foreign-grown tomatoes from entering the U.S. marketplace illegally through mislabeled blended imported tomato products by authorizing the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to use isotopic testing to verify the country of origin. China is a major producer of processing tomatoes, with significant production occurring in regions linked to serious forced-labor concerns. Chinese tomato products also face longstanding concerns over quality and food safety, including reports of rotting tomatoes and undeclared fillers that would not meet the standards required of U.S. products. Recent investigations in Europe have further exposed how Chinese tomato paste can be diverted through international supply chains and deceptively marketed as Italian or otherwise obscured in origin. This practice makes it increasingly difficult for consumers to know where their tomato products actually come from—and whether the quality and safety of those products match what is advertised. “Our Central Valley tomato growers and processors work hard to provide a safe, high-quality product, and they shouldn’t have to compete with foreign imports that are mislabeled or misrepresented,” said Congressman Valadao. “In recent years, low-quality tomatoes grown in China have been found in products like tomato paste, allowing bad actors to skirt U.S. trade and forced-labor laws and making it harder for consumers to know what they’re buying. That’s why I’m proud to introduce the bipartisan ROMA Act, which would give USDA and Customs and Border Protection a science-based tool to verify the origin of imported tomato products and better enforce the laws already on the books. This is a commonsense solution that will close a gap in our current system, protect the integrity of our agricultural supply chain, and ensure consumers know what they’re buying.” "My district grows the best processing tomatoes in the world, and American consumers deserve to know that when a tomato product is labeled as American, it is actually made from tomatoes grown here in the United State,” said Congressman Thompson. “Our farmers and processors should not be undercut by foreign products that are blended, mislabeled, or used to evade our trade and forced-labor laws. This legislation will give USDA the tools to develop the scientific fingerprint needed to verify where tomatoes are grown, protect our farmers and domestic producers, and give consumers confidence that 'Made in America' means exactly that." “American farmers work hard to grow a safe, reliable tomato supply,” said Congressman Rouzer. “We cannot allow China and other bad actors to profit by disguising foreign-grown food products as American goods. This fraud undermines North Carolina growers, deceives consumers, and breaks our laws. The ROMA Act will help end this practice, strengthen our laws, and protect the American farmers who grow our food.” “American growers should not have to compete with mislabeled imports or products made with forced labor,” said Congressman Costa. “The ROMA Act will help protect hardworking tomato growers in the San Joaquin Valley and across the country by ensuring a fair and level playing field.” “American farmers shouldn’t have to compete against Chinese products sneaking into our markets under a phony label,” said Congressman Gallagher. “If it was grown in China, consumers deserve to know it was grown in China. The ROMA Act gives us a new tool to expose where these products actually come from so American growers aren’t getting cheated.” “As one of the nation’s leading tomato-producing states, North Carolina has a real stake in making sure our agricultural markets are transparent and fair. The ROMA Act would support research to better identify the origin of imported tomato products, strengthen transparency, and help ensure North Carolina growers can compete on a level playing field,” said Congressman Davis. “North Carolina farmers work hard every day to grow quality products and bring them to market. They deserve a fair opportunity to compete, and consumers and businesses deserve to know where the products they buy come from.” “The Rooting Out Mislabeled Agriculture Act gives California processing tomato growers a powerful new tool to fight fraud in the marketplace. By creating a scientific, isotopic fingerprint for our crop, this bill helps ensure that products labeled as U.S.-grown tomatoes actually are — protecting our growers, processors, and consumers alike. This will ensure that imported tomatoes entering our market are what they claim to be,” said Mike Montna, President and CEO, California Tomato Growers Association. Background: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has increasingly explored isotopic testing as a way to verify the origin of agricultural products. This technology analyzes naturally occurring elements in food to create a geographic “fingerprint” that can help identify where a product was grown. Research has shown that isotopic testing can distinguish tomatoes from different regions, including China and Italy, even after the tomatoes have been processed into paste and other products. The ROMA Act would build on this existing technology by directing the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service to create and maintain a database of isotopic signatures for processing tomatoes. The bill would also support additional research to improve testing methods and require coordination with CBP to determine how the database can be used to strengthen import inspections and verify the origin of imported tomato products. Read the bill here . ###