This is it. Yesterday, the first GMO labeling law in the country took effect in Vermont! But some in Congress are working hard to kill it.
Last week the fake GMO labeling bill (S. 764) from Senators Stabenow (D-MI) and Roberts (R-KS) passed its first legislative hurdle—in what was essentially a test vote—by a vote of 68-29. On Wednesday, July 6th, the Senate will vote on this bill again.
How did your Senators vote? Click here to find out and then tweet at your Senator and/or leave a comment on their Facebook page! It's critical that your Senators hear from you before the next voteon Wednesday - as many times as you can!
This bill creates a GMO labeling scheme that will immediately override the state GMO labeling laws passed in Vermont, Connecticut and Maine, but will not require any labeling for 2 years, while USDA comes up with some vague labeling standard using discriminatory QR codes, websites or 800 numbers.
Big Ag and food companies have made it clear which option they support for labeling: QR codes. They know consumers don’t use these codes and that “labeling” via QR codes is really no labeling all.
Only 64% of Americans own a smartphone.2 That means that more than a third of all Americans will not be able to access GMO information if products are labeled with QR codes. Moreover, those left out are disproportionately low income and those living in rural areas. According to Pew Research Center, only 50% of low income people in the U.S. own a smartphone; only 52% of rural Americans own a smartphone; and only 27% of seniors own a smartphone.3 Even those who do own smartphones are not guaranteed consistent access to the internet.4 At the end of the day, a substantial majority of Americans would be deprived of their right to know if GMO labeling were done through QR codes.
We know we’ve asked a lot of you on this bill – but if this bill passes, Vermont’s law—and likely all on-package labeling—will disappear.Please take a just a moment to tweet at your Senators or leave a comment on their Facebook pages. On Wednesday, July 6th, the Senate will vote on this bill again, and they need to hear from you that this bill is a sham.
Find your Senators’ Twitter and Facebook links here.
Thanks for standing up for our right to know,
The Center for Food Safety team
P.S. - Not on Twitter or Facebook? Send your Senators an email instead.
-------------------
More Info:
1. http://www.agriculture.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Mandatory%20Labeling%20Bill.pdf
2. http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/01/us-smartphone-use-in-2015/
3. http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/01/chapter-one-a-portrait-of-smartphone-ownership/
4. http://www.zdnet.com/article/the-state-of-lte-4g-networks-worldwide-in-2014-and-the-poor-performance-of-the-us/
Contact Us
CFS welcomes your questions and comments. Please contact us at office@centerforfoodsafety.org, or at one of our offices.
National Headquarters
660 Pennsylvania Ave, SE, #302
Washington, DC 20003
phone (202) 547-9359 | fax(202) 547-9429
www.centerforfoodsafety.org
Comments