A few months ago, the Maine Legislature passed a bill requiring labels for genetically modified foods. The bill passed in spite of a lack of scientific basis for such a law and the state attorney general’s testimony that the bill would likely not hold up to constitutional scrutiny.
In Maine’s case, state legislators cowed to special interest pressure and passed this anti-business bill, writes Gordon Colby of the Bangor Daily News. When the issue of GMO labeling is left to the citizens, GMO labeling efforts are soundly rejected, as recently evidenced in California and Washington.
“It’s common sense, after all: If you don’t like GMO products, you don’t have to buy them,” he writes. “We don’t need to create more bureaucracy and higher operational costs for our already-struggling farmers and retailers. Organic food producers have the freedom to label their products GMO-free, and many do. Consumers already have the freedom to choose.”
Related on the SLP
Read the full, original story: GMO label mandate onerous and unwarranted, not based on science
Additional Resources:
- “Government should not be involved in GMO labeling,” Real Food
- “Agricultural industry willing to compromise in GMO labeling battle,” Jayson Lusk
- “Maine Legislature ‘did the right thing’ by passing GMO labeling bill,” Morning Sentinel
