SPECIAL FEATURE
6 . |
Alfalfa |
7 . |
Papaya |
8 . |
Squash |
9 . |
Potatoes |
10 . Apples |
11 . Sugar beets |
WHAT ARE THE CONCERNS ? The majority of consumers seem to be focused on one primary issue : what ’ s in my food ? A simple way to say this is “ food labeling .” Second , some consumers and other interest groups are concerned about unknown allergies or similar issues . Other concerns that crop up ( pun intended ) include the following .
• Might there be toxic effects to beneficial animals ?
• Will overuse cause resistance by pests and weeds ( superweeds )?
• Might there be growth with GE seeds in unwanted areas ?
• Is outcrossing ( transmission of characteristics from one crop to another ) possible ?
FOOD LABELING Since the overwhelming desire of most Americans is to know “ what ’ s in my food ,” US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard on December 20 , 2018 . The US Congress passed this law in 2016 and directed the US Department of Agriculture to establish this mandatory standard for disclosing foods that are or may be bioengineered . Like it or not ( and you can find plenty of folks with opposing views ), the devil is in the details . The passage of this law stopped individual states from passing their own food labeling laws when it comes to GMOs .
A Brief Summary of this Law
• Labeling started ( or was allowed to start ) as early as February 2019 with a disclosure requirement by January 1 , 2022 , on all bioengineered food products . There are also various effective dates depending upon the manufacturer ’ s size , but all will need to comply by the 2022 date .
• Disclosures in the set standards are all captured under the term “ bioengineered ,” but “ genetically modified organism ,” “ GMO ,” and “ genetic
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