Some products already include GMO labels like the one on this bag of peanut M&Ms purchased outside a U.S. Senate snack bar.
Rep. Collin Peterson of Minnesota will support a Senate bill that requires food sold in the U.S. to carry labels disclosing genetically modified ingredients if it reaches the House for a vote. Peterson, a Democrat who is the ranking minority member of the House Agriculture Committee, reached that decision after studying a new Senate proposal. If passed by both chambers and signed into law, it would become the nation's first mandatory on-package labeling law for genetically modified organisms - known as GMOs. Peterson voted for a House bill that outlawed on-package designation of genetically engineered ingredients. But he said that the need for a national labeling policy in lieu of state laws like one that takes effect in Vermont July 1 was more important than deadlocking over on-package GMO labels.
"While I prefer the House-passed voluntary approach for the labeling of food produced from genetically engineered crops, I will support the Senate GMO labeling bill should it come to a vote in the House and I will encourage my colleagues to join me," Peterson said in a statement Friday afternoon. "It is not a perfect bill, but after careful review I believe it is in the best interest of farmers, consumers, and food manufacturers to have clear direction and certainty in this area. I have concluded that any further delay would needlessly prolong the uncertainty created by the Vermont law. It's important to find a balance between label transparency and the safety of these crops."
