The Natural Products Association (NPA) Board of Directors has endorsed federal legislation that would require FDA to label foods containing genetically-modified ingredients.
“Supporting this legislation is the next logical step for the Natural Products Association," NPA Executive Director and CEO John Shaw said today in a statement. “In the last few months, the association has demonstrated its commitment to ensuring consumers know what’s in their food. We feel strongly that this bill is in line with our guiding principles on GMO labeling, and that it will lead the country on the path toward transparency that Americans are demanding."
The Genetically Engineered Food Right-to-Know Act was introduced in April by two Democrats, Sen. Barbara Boxer of California and Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon. If the legislation was passed by Congress, America would join 64 other countries that require the labeling of genetically-modified foods.
The bipartisan legislation would require FDA to adopt labeling standards for genetically-engineered whole and processed foods, including fish and seafood.
Most Americans support the labeling of GMOs (genetically modified organisms), and an increasing number of states have introduced initiatives to require that such foods include labels.
But the chances of federal legislation passing through Congress is slim. In recent years, only 11 percent of federal bills have made it past committee and just 3 percent were enacted, GovTrack.us reports. The GMO legislation has been assigned to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, according to GovTrack.us, a project of Civic Impulse, LLC in Washington, D.C.
