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House Expected To Vote This Week On GMO Disclosure Bill

March

UPDATE Thursday, 5:00 p.m.: Today Congress overwhelmingly passed Senate Bill 764 - the GMO disclosure bill -  with a 306 - 117 vote.

S.B. 764 allows food companies to label products containing GMOs with a scannable bar code or symbol, and prevents states from creating their own GMO labeling laws, including the now null bill recently implemented in Vermont.

Senators supporting the bill said grocery stores would prevent discrimination against people without smartphones or Internet access by implementing scanning stations, but there were no guidelines as to how or when those stations will be built in bill.

Another point of contention in the bill is the definition of GMO itself. The Food and Drug Administration says under the new bill, foods containing highly refined oil and high fructose corn syrup are not considered genetically modified. Once those ingredients are fully processed, they no longer contain genetic material from an engineered source, which defies the definition of GMO in the bill.

The Agriculture Department says that issue is likely to end up in court.

S.B. 764Â now heads to President Obama's desk, where he is expected to sign it into law.

UPDATE Wednesday, 2:45 p.m.: With a 242 - 185 vote, the House cleared the way today for a final vote on Senate Bill 764 on Thursday.

The White House also confirmed that President Obama is expected to sign the bill in its current form.

Despite accusations that the legislation is a "very, very weak GMO labeling bill" because of the digital disclosure option, it is expected to pass with support from a large majority of House Democrats.

Original Story:

A new battle is scheduled for this week in the long-winded war over labeling genetically modified foods.

Senate Bill 764, crafted by Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts and ranking member Debbie Stabenow, won approval last Thursday from the Senate and the food and agriculture industries alike.

That bill gives the US Department of Agriculture two years to develop new methods for how companies can label GMO ingredients, including indirect methods like symbols and "quick response" (Q.R.) codes that must be scanned with a smartphone or an in-store scanner.

The bill also preempts state GMO labeling laws, including the Vermont law that went into effect July 1 and requires all companies to use clear, on-package GMO labels.

Some say S.B. 764 is a step in the right direction for GMO-label advocates, as a bill passed by the House just a year ago made all GMO labels voluntary.

But still others say the bill isn't enough. The Food and Drug Administration, for example, warned that the bill "would result in a somewhat narrow scope of coverage." Products made from certain types of GMOs – like genetically engineered soybeans, for example – might not be labeled.

In addition, the methods of labeling are indirect, and the bill doesn't require manufacturers to provide information on how a food was modified, or why.

The House of Representatives asked for a consideration of S.B. 764Â in the House Rules Committee meeting Tuesday, making a final vote likely before the beginning of a Congressional six-week recess that begins on Friday.

This post will be updated.

Read More:



  • GMO bill gets a date in the House (Politico)
  • Senate Passes A GMO Labeling Bill That The Food Industry Likes (NPR)
  • A Flaw Approach to Labeling Genetically Modified Food (New York Times)


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