Lets label your meat. Everything else has a label. Starting in 2012 you’ll get to know what’s in the beef you buy. Those familiar nutrition labels on everything from soda to cereal to mayonnaise will also be required on meats beginning on January 1, 2012 the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced recently.

The new labels will list calories, calories from fat, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, protein and vitamins for 40 of the most commonly purchased cuts of beef, poultry, pork and lamb, according to an early look at the labels. We may all soon be vegetarians once we know what is going into our meats.

Federal officials say they hope the labels will make Americans as conscious about health choices in the meats they buy as they have become in looking at labels on other packaged food products. We soon should be shocked at the amount of calories and fat that is in our meats. A 4-ounce serving of regular ground beef that is 73% lean meat contains 350 calories, 270 of them from fat, according to the USDA making up 60% of the suggested daily intake of saturated fat in a 2,000-calorie diet. I used up 60% of my days food on one lousy 4-ounce thing. Did you have to tell me?

The labels will help consumers “make sure they are doing right by their families as they prepare meals, “Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says. Well, Mr Agriculture, how about enforcing more readily available nutritious fruits and vegetables at affordable prices in our fast food shops and supermarkets. Just look at the sales fliers at your local market. The best buys are for soda, twinkies,canned pasta not fresh foods. And instead of giving me burgers and fries at the dollar menu how about low fat and low sugar delights like real fruit smoothies or a great fruit salad nah just put a label on more stuff.