A coalition of more than 1000 food and beverage companies, business groups and trade organizations are urging the Senate to act on legislation that would establish a national labeling standard for foods made using genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.
The groups expressed support of the bipartisan agreement announced last week by the Senate Agricultural Committee that would prohibiting states or other entities from mandating labels for foods that contain GMOs. Vermont’s law requiring the labeling of GMO foods goes into effect tomorrow, July 1. Under the committee’s proposed agreement, companies would be required to disclose GMO use through a text label, a symbol or a link to a website via technology such as a QR code.
The groups sent a letter expressing their support to majority leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and minority leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV).
“The issue of biotech labeling is one of the most significant issues that the agriculture and food industry has faced in recent years,” the groups say in the letter. “The US agriculture and food industry creates over 17 million jobs, representing nearly one in 10 jobs. This very system—which produces the most abundant, the highest quality and the most affordable food supply in the world—will be threatened with large economic costs without a national uniform solution to the biotech labeling issue.”
Read the full letter here.
