WASHINGTON, DC—Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) today led 18 of her colleagues in calling for the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) to clarify labeling for organic meat, poultry and egg products produced without Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). The representatives asked Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety Brian Ronholm to reconsider proposed language that would be confusing to consumers.

Current regulations do not allow companies to simply say that their products do not contain GMOs. A proposed rule would instead require companies to state that USDA-certified organic products prohibit genetically engineered feed and ingredients, which, as the representatives outlined in their letter, is confusing for consumers.

“For over a year, organic companies have submitted various iterations of labels for FSIS approval, all of which have been rejected because of the term ‘non-GMO,’ the representatives wrote to Acting Under Secretary Ronholm.

“Data…reveals that when shopping for organic products, parents are most likely to look for the term ‘organic’ (63%) on packaging labels. The next two terms most identified by organic consumers were ‘Non GMO’ (34%) and ‘Produced without GMOs’ (34%). Organic buyers are least familiar with ‘produced without biotechnology’ (20%) followed by ‘Non-GE’ (19%). Therefore, if the intent of labels is to provide consumers the truthful information that they seek and will understand, ‘non-GMO’ is clearly the appropriate term to use.”

The letter can be read in its entirety here.


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