Lobbyists at it Again: GMO Labeling Fight Likely to Resume in New Year
Despite the people wanting more transparency
by Christina Sarich
Agricultural leaders aren’t giving up on the fight to halt foods frombeing labeled if they contain genetically modified ingredients. Even
though the bill that would have ruined GMO labeling initiatives across
the country was stopped dead in its tracks in Congress, leaders say the issue of GMO labeling will be ‘top priority’ when they get back to work in January.
Richard Wilkins, the new president of the American Soybean
Association, says he was disappointed that efforts to address GMO
labeling, as part of the omnibus budget bill, were unsuccessful.
“We were hoping to get some kind of language in the
omnibus bill to preempt states from being able to put into place
mandatory GMO labeling requirements. . . But we’re getting indications,
certainly from Senator Stabenow and others, that it’s going to be at the
top of their list of priorities when they go back into session after
the holidays.”
I’m sure he’s anxious, since 93% of all soy grown in the U.S. is now genetically modified.
Wilkins has been trying to prop up Big Food and the biotech industry
by saying that state-by-state labeling laws would not only be a
nightmare for food manufacturers, but would also create confusion for
consumers – though it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to read a label
that says, “THIS FOOD CONTAINS GENETICALLY MODIFIED INGREDIENTS.”
