National Pork Producers Council v. Bergland

HEANEY, Circuit Judge.

This appeal presents the question of whether the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) properly exercised its authority when it issued regulations permitting nitrate and nitrite-free meat products to be sold under product names traditionally reserved for foods containing these compounds. The district court held that it did not. We reverse.

I

The history of nitrate and nitrite use in curing meat and poultry products is a long one. As early as Homer’s time (900 B.C.), curing meat with salt was an established practice. Although it surely was not known at the time;…