This week marked a significant new development for the food industry. No, thankfully there haven't been any new cases of listeria (although China is dealing with the the tainting of baby food with the chemical melamine), however a new law mandates that if there were another outbreak, you might have a good idea where it originated. On September 30, a food labeling law came into effect in the U.S. that requires most food retailers to provide information regarding where certain food products come from.

Meat and produce are at the forefront of the law (many canned and packaged foods already disclose such information) and must display their country of origin, however skeptics are arguing that the regulation is still too ambiguous to be effective. The law is meant to show consumers if a particular food item was imported, however disptues over which foods qualify are already causing confusion and frustration. Should peanuts and pepperoni be subject to the law or exampt because they are processed foods? How about a bag of lettuce that contains two different varieties that may come from different countries? The USDA says Congress determined which foods fell under the law and which were except as part of the "processed" category, however they won't elaborate on finer details like what defines a food as "processed."

Besides determining which foods need to be labeled, proponents of the law say consumers have every right to know where their food comes from. This is especially beng driven home now that the "eat local" movement has picked up steam and consumers continue to seek out options that were produced practically in their own backyard.

This is just the first step. Right now it's a matter of food origin, but what's next? Is it possible that our food might have a little miniature biography on its label one day? Besides origin, maybe one day know the farming methods used to produce our food. Or if they was altered in any way during the growth process. Possibly even if that ground beef you're eyeing came from the spawn of a cloned animal. You may end up being better acquainted with a head of lettuce you buy at the grocery store than the nice individual you met at a party and are having dinner with a in a few days.

Most intriguing will be to see the effect this has, if any, on food purchasing habits. Undoubtedly some people do care where their food came from will be scouring the labels looking for the info, but what about the rest of consumers who barely look at items before tossing them into the cart - will knowing that an item came from Thailand rather than the U.S. have a significant impact? The government will stress the important of food safety as justification for the law, however the public isn't likely to stress about it all, unless it hits them in a sore spot - their wallets - that is.

Ambiguous or not for the time being, this new food safety law has opened up a whole can of worms regarding disclosure in the industry. Whether the average consumer will even take notice or be influenced by it remains to be seen.

» MSNBC