Connecticut Passes First GMO Labeling Law In The U.S.

Connecticut Passes First GMO Labeling Law In U.S

"The state of Connecticut has become the first to successfully enact a law requiring food containing genetically modified ingredients to be labeled as such, though it comes with the unusual requirement that four other states must pass similar legislation.

Though supporters of GMO product labeling will likely laud the state legislature’s approval of the new bill, it represents a significant weakening of the initial proposal with the introduction of a bipartisan 'compromise' requiring that four additional states, one of which must border Connecticut, pass labeling laws as well. An additional requirement is that the aggregate population of any combination of such states exceed 20 million people.

Perhaps not surprisingly then, as the New York Daily News reported just yesterday, a last-minute push by biotech lobbyists was attributed to the defeat of a GMO labeling law in New York.

Undeterred for the moment, New York assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal (D-Manhattan), the bill’s lead sponsor, has vowed to try to find another way to bring the measure to a vote before the state’s June 20 recess.

Rosenthal’s chief of staff told the Daily News that a lobbyist for the Council for Biotechnology Information, an organization that represents biotech giants such as Monsanto and DuPont, had attended the New York state committee vote.

“We heard there was heavy industry lobbying at the last minute,” Rebecca Spector, West Coast director for the Center of Food Safety, told the news website TakePart.

“When they counted, they had the votes in the committee, and at the last minute, two committee members switched their votes. We’re still waiting to find out which two,” she added.

As RT previously reported, even within states like Vermont, which is long known for its independent-minded state legislature, fear of pending lawsuits by companies like Monsanto generated a lack of support for GMO labeling laws.

Meanwhile, in late April, a new federal bill that would mandate the labeling of GMOs, the Genetically Engineered Food Right-to-Know Act, was introduced by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR). The govtrack.us website currently gives that bill a 3 per cent chance of surviving a committee before moving on to floor debate and a potential vote.

Though few expect GMO labeling to pass at the federal level, advocates for such measures point to the fact that the mere introduction represents progress for laws that have made little to no progress in the decades since first being introduced. This is great news. Makes you really wonder though about what really caused this to "fail" in California.

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Wow that is truly B-S. They pass it but it still really carries no weight because of the same viper corporations being allowed to interfere with the will of the people. Think you live in a Democracy, think again. Well, I have a listing that I posted of companies that sell products with GMOS in them and I have passed it on and myself am BOYCOTTING EVERY PRODUCT ON THAT LIST. The only way to truly hit them is in their profits and to keep getting out the truth.

Oh, and here is a quote from Monsanto's Chariman, Valdemort, I mean, Hugh Grant in response to the March Against Monsanto (BTW, it is obvious from this that the people globally are definitely giving them something they didn't bargain for.):

"Grant told Bloomberg at Monsanto’s St. Louis headquarters this week: “There is space in the supermarket shelf for all of us.”

Oh now, this is priceless. Is this why 85-90% of our processed foods have this sh** in it? Why they buy out seed companies to own the majority of seeds? Why they don't allow farmers to save seed? Why they sue states simply looking to label foods? Why they sprayed Agent Orange, Round Up and PCBS all over the world to bring us poison food, water and birth defects? Well, in the nicest way I can muster...May you burn in hell for what you've done.