Posted on 04/24/2014 10:39:01 AM PDT by Theoria
The Green Mountain State is poised to become the first to require food companies to label food products containing genetically modified ingredients.
Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin tweeted he will sign a bill state lawmakers passed Wednesday mandating that foods with GMOs be labeled as having been produced with "genetic engineering." The bill would also make it illegal for foods with GMOs to be labeled "all natural" or "natural."
While Maine and Connecticut have already passed GMO labeling bills, those bills contain clauses that keep them from going into effect until surrounding states pass similar rules. Vermont's bill would go into effect on July 1, 2016.
For the past few years, consumer advocates have been ratcheting up the pressure on states and the federal government to require labeling, arguing that information about GMOs is essential if we're to make informed decisions about what food to buy.
Meanwhile, the food industry has resisted the idea of labeling, arguing that GMOs are safe and labeling costs would be passed onto consumers.
But recently, they changed their tune a bit. As we reported in February, a food industry coalition representing farmers, seed companies and other food producers who rely heavily on GMO ingredients said they support voluntary labeling standards. And they asked the Food and Drug Administration to outline what they might look like.
The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which led that coalition, responded sternly to the passage of the Vermont bill. "It sets the nation on a costly and misguided path toward a 50-state patchwork of GMO labeling policies that will do nothing to advance the safety of consumers," the association said in a statement.
(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...
Bill would have FDA decide on labeling genetically modified food[FR]
Basically, this is 99% of all canned or otherwise processed foods these days. That is my take on it.
GMO my ass. Vegan agenda ping.
So? Just stop supplying food products to Vermont. After all, it’s a small market anyway.
Every food needs to be labelled as man has tinkered with the genetic code of plants and animals since we started to practice agriculture. The only difference is we can specifically target specific components of the genetic code.
My only thought on the subject is if China for Gods’s sake will not take GMO corn I sure don’t want that stuff going in my system. We are going to try to start growing most of our own veggies from heritage seeds.
While this is something I’d rather the free market work out, Big Gov has recently made food decisions like allowing our chicken to be processed in China. Until we get Big Gov out of our food production, this is what we’re stuck with.
My only thought on the subject is if China for Gods’s sake will not take GMO corn
You want non gmo, go buy organic. Don’t let the politicians and media do you thinking for you................
Ding ding ding!
If I ran a food company, I would not be changing the labels of my products nationwide to cater to a tiny population like Vermont. I’ll just sell my product elsewhere.
One thing I want even less than GMO food is government bringing its force into the matter. Let free people sort it out.
“Huh, that is your test?”
Yeh its a good test. The Chinese eat stuff that nobody will eat. They feed their fish poop. Crikes if they won’t eat GMO thats all you need to know.
Man has never before physically altered the code itself and we know far less about biology than we think. One change in code that we think only makes a fruit brighter might also cause hundreds of other negative changes that we cannot understand or test for. There are also many possible unintended consequences of introducing man-made genes into nature.
They're playing with fire for profit IMO
I don’t see how any major company will avoid labeling, just to avoid the possibility of a lawsuit because one of their suppliers has included some GMO in some feed to their animals or something.
On the other hand, it would be hilarious if Vermont passes this, and in a month everybody In Vermont walks into their grocery store and thinks they moved to the old Soviet union, finding the shelves bare because national chains can’t be bothered to do state-by-state labeling, so they simply stop selling. I imagine Vermont isn’t exactly a huge market to begin with.
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