National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson issued a statement in opposition to H.R. 4432, The Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2014, sponsored by Reps. Mike Pompeo, R-Kan., and G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C.
Mr Johnson: "Farmers Union members have clearly stated their position in the policy adopted at our annual meeting in favor of required consumer labeling for foods made from or containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
The rights of both GMO and non-GMO producers should be respected as appropriate regulatory agencies continue to research and evaluate ethical, environmental, food safety, legal, market and structural issues that impact everyone in the food chain.
"NFU policy supports conspicuous, mandatory labeling for food products throughout the processing chain to include all ingredients, additives and processes, such as genetically altered or engineered food products.
"Further, in numerous places NFU’s member-driven policy supports the authority of lower levels of government and opposes pre-emption by federal standards. This legislation would pre-empt state actions to label foods containing GMOs.
"Surveys have consistently shown that consumers want more information about their food, not less. The prevalence of state-led efforts to label genetically modified organisms (GMOs) only corroborates these findings. As the nation’s food producers, Farmers Union members fully understand the need to meet the market’s demands."
