Voluntary GMO labeling bill stalled in committee

House Agriculture Committee lawmakers want more control over deciding which government agency — the Agriculture Department or the Food and Drug Administration — would control the regulation of labels for genetically modified foods.

This leaves a much-publicized bill to create labeling standards in limbo.

The “Safe and Accurate Labeling Act,” H.R. 1599, was reintroduced with bipartisan support last month, garnering cheers from agriculture commodity groups and criticism from environmental organizations pushing for mandatory disclosure of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on food packaging.

But beyond the burst of pronouncements for or against the bill, H.R. 1599 appears to have stalled. This frustrates members of the Agriculture Committee, which has some jurisdiction over the bill but less control than the Energy and Commerce Committee, which has oversight of FDA.

“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of enthusiasm to move the bill in that committee, not as much enthusiasm as there is in the Ag Committee; that’s the problem,” said Agriculture Committee ranking member Collin Peterson (D-Minn.).

The bill, introduced by Reps. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.) and G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.), would pre-empt state initiatives to affix labels on GMOs by reaffirming FDA’s role in regulating food labels, allowing the agency to develop guidelines for a voluntary labeling system. The legislation would also allow USDA to certify non-GMO products, in a manner similar to its program for certified organic goods.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: GMO labeling bill stalls amid interagency, committee tussle

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