The decision by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee in Vermont to pass a bill requiring labels on foods made with ingredients derived from GMO seeds, whether or not there is any detectable level of them in the product, is a dangerous slope to go down.
Before the Senate votes on the bill, they should make sure they have all the facts. This is a decision that will have a significant impact on everyone in the state because Vermont will be the only state in the country to go it alone. So as legislators consider the information presented to them, they should make sure it is conclusive, vetted and well thought through.
Logistical issues haven’t been thought through. Take testing. What exactly will qualify as GMO-free? And then there’s the problem of who will monitor the non-GMO foods. Vermont only has a few health inspectors, and they can barely cover their current workload.
If, after truly understanding and researching all the scientific facts surrounding genetically altered foods, Vermont legislators decide to pass a labeling law, they can do so with a clear conscience. But if they do so based on opinions being presented as facts or logistics not thought through properly, they will have to own the consequences.
Read the full, original article: Think carefully about labeling law
