I strongly support consumers in their desire to know what is in their food and this bill is the best option to provide that information to the American consumer.  The national standards created under H.R. 1599 will provide information to the public in an efficient, consistent, and comprehendible manner that is preferable to the inconsistency and confusion created by the states. Though this bill is not perfect, I believe that it is in the best interest of the American public and my constituents for the future, which is why I decided to support the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015.

Without H.R. 1599, states would be able to create their own, individual standards for genetically engineered food. I am concerned about the risk of misleading and inconsistent labeling not just between states, but within a single state as well. In a state that has already developed a GMO labeling law, there are inconsistencies.  Vegetable soup is considered a GE, but vegetable soup with beef is not; selected corn sugars, cornstarch, food coloring, and certain oils that come from GE corn, GE soybeans and other food ingredients that are once processed into final products are technically free from GE material, yet they cannot be labeled as non-GMO.

 Inconsistencies such as these can only lead to more confusion over the presence of genetically modified elements of a food item. I am also concerned that states will create standards that suit their best interests and limit inter-state trade of food products.  While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) did not previously have a standard to judge non-genetically modified food, this bill creates that standard to provide consistent information to the American public.

This bill calls on the FDA to create a single, nation-wide definition of genetically modified food and a certification regime to confirm that label’s legitimacy. It has been modeled after the one currently used by the USDA in regards to organic foods, which has been highly successful. With genetically engineered foods comprising almost 75% of our food supply, instituting a standardized certification for non-GMO labeling gives consumers more information and enables them to tailor their shopping choices to the labeled products.