Monday, December 5th 2016
Courtesy of Brownfield Ag News
A spokeswomen for one of the largest biotechnology trade associations says GMO labeling is a marketing issue. Managing Director for Science and Regulatory Affairs Adrianne Massey with the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) tells Brownfield if GMOs have issues related to consumer health and safety the Food and Drug Administration would mandate labeling, but current legislation has given authority to USDA. “It’s the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service that’s responsible for the labels and not the Food and Drug Administration, so it’s a way of saying to the consumers ‘This is a marketing issue, this is not an issue related to consumer health and safety.’” She says the industry is hopeful gene editing will be seen as another form of plant breeding and not be regulated to the extent of current genetically engineered crops. “Vegetable growers should be the greatest beneficiaries of this particularly with disease resistant traits and keeping up with the evolution that those pathogens, those fungi, those viruses evolve.” She says sitting down one-on-one with consumers is the best way to help educate why farmers use biotechnology and their benefits for improved sustainability.