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House passes GMO labeling act

U.S. Capitol

The House passed H.R. 1599; the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act. On a 275-150 vote; 230 Republicans and 45 Democrats voted “yes”: 12 Republicans and 138 Democrats voted “no”.  The bill establishes a national standard allowing food companies to label a product “non-GMO” if they so-choose. It does not require labeling if a product contains genetically modified ingredients.  The national standard would supersede any state GMO labeling laws. There is currently no similar bill in the Senate.

There were a few attempts to amend the Act: one which would require any product which must be label as containing GMOs in another country must also be labeled as such in the U.S. Another amendment offered would give tribes the right to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of genetically modified plants on tribal lands. A third would prohibit the use of the word “natural” on the label of any product containing genetically modified ingredients. All three amendments were defeated.

House Ag Committee Chair Michael Conaway welcomed the passage saying: H.R. 1599 establishes a voluntary nation-wide marketing program that gives consumers access to consistent, reliable information while protecting advancements in food production technology and innovation.”

Ranking Member Colin Peterson called the bill a reasonable, workable solution. The Minnesota Democrat added: “Importantly, the bill changes the current review process to ensure that every new genetically engineered plant destined to enter the market goes through an FDA safety review. The bill also sets a national, uniform standard to define genetically engineered products. Food producers and processors choosing to market their products as non-GE will be able to do so with a USDA-backed label.”

 

A number of farm groups expressing their support for the House’s action:

American Farm Bureau president Bob Stallman: “Congress stood with farmers and ranchers today in supporting innovation that helps the environment and keeps food prices down for everyone. The Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015 would protect consumers from confusing and misleading GMO labels and create a national, voluntary labeling standard based on science and common sense.

American Soybean Association president Wade Cowan: “The passage of the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act is a significant victory for the freedom of soybean farmers to make the most of the broad range of advances that biotechnology provides for our industry.”

The National Corn Growers Association Trade Policy and Biotechnology Action Team chair John Linder; “This important legislation will create a consumer-friendly, science-based labeling standard for foods made with genetically modified organisms, as well as for GMO-free foods.”

National Milk Producers Federation president and CEO Jim Mulhern: “Today’s bipartisan vote demonstrates the broad support for voluntarily labeling foods with GM ingredients. A patchwork of state-by-state labeling requirements is simply not an option, as testimony at several congressional hearings clearly showed.”

 

  • House Ag Committee Chair Michael Conaway welcomed the passage saying: H.R. 1599 establishes a voluntary nation-wide marketing program that gives consumers access to consistent, reliable information while protecting advancements in food production technology and innovation.”

    What a crock of BS. Passage of this bill hides the truth about what is in your food. It labels foods as “natural” even if they contain GMOs. It negates laws that were voted on in states and overides the decisions made by the individual states. The US Govt does not have the righht to preempt laws that the citizens voted on!!! This bill needs to be killed in the senate for the good of everyone that wants to be healthy. Shame on all of you.

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