When you buy food at the grocery store, do you know the quality of the ingredients that you are purchasing? Producers of genetically modified foods are lobbying to stop you from knowing the truth about your food, because they are trying to pass a bill that would not require the labeling of genetically modified ingredients.
Laws Might be Changing
In July, the House passed the proposed legislation which would prevent states from requiring food manufacturers to label the ingredients if they contain GMOs. At this point only one state, Vermont, has passed a law which requires GMO labeling and this law goes into effect in July 2016. Several other states are in the process of trying to pass similar laws, and the food industry lobbying is occurring on a federal level to block the decisions on the state level.
The House bill has been backed by GMO supporters in the food industry, because they know that a lot of money is on the line if consumers don’t buy a certain product because of GMOs. They claim that genetically modified foods are safe to eat and the labels would be confusing to consumers.
At this point, the bill is going to the Senate for approval, so right now is the best time to take action. Contact your representatives to let them know that you don’t agree with the bill, and pass this information along to friends and family so that they can reach out to their representatives as well.
Are GMOs Safe?
Genetically modified seeds are made in laboratories, and they are developed to have certain traits. For example, some of the seeds are created to have a resistance to herbicides, so that the herbicides can be applied to the fields to kill the weeds without affecting the crop.
Additional research needs to be done in order to understand all of the health implications of genetically modified foods, but early research is quite alarming. For example, it has been found that genetically modified foods can affect food allergy levels and food allergies have drastically increased since genetically modified foods were introduced.
Other potential health risks associated with genetically modified foods include cancer, infertility, insulin regulation problems, gastrointestinal issues, immune problems, and more.
GMO Labeling Laws
It is estimated that 75 – 80% of packaged foods contain some genetically modified ingredients. These ingredients are becoming much more common, but many people don’t realize that they are eating GMOs because the packaging doesn’t contain identifying labels.
The proposed House bill would make it much more difficult to require food companies to label GMOs. Additionally, a new certification process would be required for foods that are labeled with “GMO free” packaging, making it more difficult to make a GMO free claim. Even though a large portion of the population supports the labeling of genetically modified foods, the lobbying is working against the desires of the population.
At this point, legislation is being worked on for the Senate to support the House bill, and then it would need to be signed by President Barack Obama. If you are against this legislation, then you need to take action right away before it is passed in the Senate. Contact your representatives right away!
Are you interested in learning more about the health implications of genetically modified foods? Read
Unravel the Mystery, by Ann Malkmus, where you can find important information about how GMOs impact your health and affect the risk of chronic illness and disease.
