|
 |
Agricultural Law & Taxation Blog
Congress
finalizes mandatory GMO labeling law
From Sam Custer
OSU Extension, Darke County
After several years of debate over voluntary versus mandatory GMO
(genetically modified organism) labeling, Congress passed legislation
yesterday to create a unified national standard requiring disclosure of
information for bioengineered foods. Predictions are that
President Obama will sign the legislation soon. Once effective,
the new law will preempt state laws that require labeling of foods
containing GMOs, such as the Vermont labeling law that recently became
effective on July 1. The bill's passage through Congress
represented a bi-partisan compromise led by senators Pat Roberts (R-KS)
and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). "This is the most important food and
agriculture policy debate of the last 20 years," said Sen. Roberts.
What’s in the bill?
The legislation amends the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to
include the following:
Definition of “bioengineered” food, which is food intended for human
consumption that contains genetic material that has been modified
through in vitro recombinant DNA techniques and for which the
modification could not otherwise be obtained through conventional
breeding or found in nature.
The Secretary of Agriculture shall determine the amount of
bioengineered substance necessary to deem the food as bioengineered.
A food that is derived from an animal that consumed feed containing
bioengineered substances shall not be considered bioengineered.
Thus, meat, poultry, dairy and eggs from animals that have consumed GMO
feed will not be subject to the labeling requirements because they
cannot be defined as bioengineered.
Preemption of state food labeling standards. No state or
political subdivision may establish requirements for labeling whether a
food or seed is bioengineered or contains ingredients that are
bioengineered. A food may bear disclosure of bioengineering only
in accordance with federal regulations arising from this law.
Creation of federal mandatory disclosure standard. Within two
years of the bill’s enactment, the Secretary of Agriculture must
establish a mandatory national bioengineered food disclosure standard
and the procedures necessary to implement the national standard.
Choice of labeling. The federal standard must give a manufacturer
the option of disclosing information with on-package text, a symbol or
an electronic or digital link, such as a QR code. An electronic
or digital link must contain access to an internet website or other
type of electronic source.
The USDA must conduct a study to identify potential technological
challenges of disclosure through electronic or digital means, and must
provide additional options if determined that the proposed
technological options do not provide sufficient access to bioengineered
food disclosure information.
The USDA must also develop alternative disclosure options for foods
contained in small packages.
Exclusions. The following are excluded from the national
disclosure standard:
Food served in a restaurant or similar retail food establishment.
“Very small” food manufacturers, to be defined through rulemaking.
As explained above, meat, poultry, dairy and eggs from animals that
consume GMO feed.
A food containing meat, poultry or eggs if the predominant ingredient
would not independently be subject to the standard of if the
predominant ingredient is broth, stock, water or a similar solution and
the second-most predominant ingredient would not independently be
subject to the national standard.
“Small” food manufacturers. The USDA must define “small food
manufacturers” and provide such manufacturers with a grace period of at
least one year for implementation of the new standards and the
additional option of providing only a telephone number or internet
website on a food label to disclose required information.
Food safety implications. The FDA conducts a pre-market
consultation process for foods from genetically engineered plants;
foods that successfully complete the process shall not be treated as
more or less safe than non-genetically engineered counterparts because
of bioengineering.
Organically produced foods. A food certified as “organic” under
the national organic program may be labelled as “not bioengineered,”
“non-GMO” or with similar language.
Enforcement. Failing to disclose a food as bioengineered is a
prohibited act, but the rulemaking process will determine whether there
will be penalties for noncompliance. The USDA Secretary will have
authority to request records and conduct audits and hearings in regards
to compliance but will not have recall authority for a food that does
not comply with disclosure regulations.
What’s next?
The preemption established in the new law will be effective immediately
and the State of Vermont will not be able to enforce its GMO labeling
law. The USDA, through its Agricultural Marketing Service, will
begin the rulemaking process for the national disclosure
standard. A few key issues for agriculture to track thoughout the
rulemaking stage will be the determination of "how much" bioengineered
substance is sufficient to deem a food as bioengineered; defining the
"very small" food manufacturers that will be exempt from the standard
and the "small" manufacturers that will have a grace period and simpler
disclosure requirements, whether QR codes and other technology options
will remain viable due to expected objections that they discriminate
against lower income consumers; and penalties for noncompliance. The
two year window for rulemaking, however, leaves open the opportunity
for future changes such as amending the legislation or prohibiting
funding to be used for its implementation. Thus, while we have
entered a new stage of the GMO labeling debate, the uncertainty of GMO
labeling is not yet fully resolved.
|
|
|
|
