The recent salmonella outbreak has reinforced U.S. consumers' desire to know more about the origin of their food.

New labeling rules beginning Sept. 30 will do just that — tell consumers what country their food comes from in the case of beef, chicken, fresh produce, frozen fruits and vegetables, and other products.

But the new initiative will cost something, too — $2.5 billion next year for American companies, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Such costs will be passed on to the consumer at a time when food prices are increasing.

Yet it is true that Americans want more information about their food. The latest salmonella outbreak, which has sickened 1,300 Americans since April, intensified that desire. Those illnesses were traced to hot peppers from Mexico.

Theoretically, the proposed labeling laws would help people avoid certain foods in the event of another outbreak. But that would be true mainly for food bought in stores. It would not cover restaurants.

Some recent salmonella cases involved diners eating salsa at Mexican restaurants, for instance. Yet responsible restaurants presumably would be aware of any problems with specific foods and would take precautions to protect their customers as well as their reputation.

But avoiding food poisoning is not the only factor driving this phenomeon: People simply want to be better informed about the foods they are using — for the sake of nutrition and sound health.

Of course, this will place an extra burden on retailers, food handlers, processors, wholesalers and importers, according to the Agriculture Department.

Those costs will be added on to grocery bills.