No NH Labels In 2016

This week brought bad news for supporters of GMO food labeling in New Hampshire.

On Wednesday, the state's House chamber voted 239 to 122 to kill a bill to require labels for food made with genetically modified organisms.

"We tried our best, but the power of the Biotech Industry and Grocery Manufacturers Association once again prevailed," said Bonnie Wright of the group NH Right to Know GMO. "This battle may be lost, but the war is far from over."

The vote signals New Hampshire's last chance for a label law passing in 2016.

The House Environment and Agriculture Committee had recommended against the bill. In a letter to the Union Leader, committee chair Bob Haefer and ranking committee minority member Tara Sad explained that they opposed the bill because GMO labeling would be expensive, unenforceable, beyond state responsibilities and could be unconstitutional.

"People who testified in the public hearing said they have a right to know. This label would inform them of nothing. Genetic engineering is a process, it's not an ingredient," the letter read.

Elsewhere In New England

Meanwhile in Rhode Island, the state's House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare held a public hearing on a sheaf of labeling rules.

The session was moved to a larger room in the statehouse to accommodate a large crowd.

No decisions came out of the hearing, but label supporters said there would be more developments after a hearing in the state's Senate, which has not yet been scheduled.

Vermont's labeling law is set to go into effect on July 1.

The food industry has requested an injunction against Vermont's law, but the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has yet to decide on that request.

Read More:

• Gmo Labeling Gets Another Look In Two New England States (Food Safety News)
• New England Lawmakers To Review GMO Labeling (Politico)