So anyone follow the GMO labeling initiative.

AzNMpower32 · #1 11-15-2013, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JCL

So some foods are labelled, then what? How do people reasonably evaluate the risk of eating broccoli (a genetic modification itself) vs tomatoes with mosquito DNA? It is an unworkable regulation, IMO, largely symbolic and of limited real value. It is also being fought at the state level. Why would state-specific labelling be a good idea? If it is necessary, then it should be a federal regulation.

People should be given the choice whether to buy genetially modified food. The risk evaluation is up to the individual, but companies should let people know that the content may be genetically modified.

Kind of like the fast food menuboard labelling for kcal consumption. People should be given the information whether a menu item has 300kcal versus 875 kcal, and allowed to make the decision for themselves.

JCL · #2 11-16-2013, 01:21 AM

Yes, but a calorie count is a straightforward thing. Consumers can judge whether 500 calories are better or worse than 800 calories, depending on their own situation. Consumers are generally not able to evaluate the types of GE modifications that may be included in any one product. And in the absence of that evaluation, GMO labelling is just playing on fears.

If you go to the EU, which you referenced, and see what happened there, it illustrates the problem. The regulations are very complicated. Exclusions include meat, milk, eggs, flavours, additives, and menu items in restaurants that do not have full menus, like cafeterias. Lots of foods have additives in them, and those get to be labelled non-GMO, just like GMO foods where the GMO content is below a certain percent. Do you think this is all leading to ease of decision making for consumers? Or is it a bureaucratic nightmare?

I should qualify that I moved from the EU several years ago. Maybe they fixed all this since I left. But I doubt it.

We already have food safety regulations. They could be used to test GMO foods without creating a separate GMO testing and labelling regime.

More useful labelling could include whether something is organic (really, not just called organic), and how far the product had been shipped, IMO.