by Shane Smith, Outreach Coordinator
We have the right to know what is in our
food and NH citizens have sent the message that they want GMO food to be
labeled. The petition, sponsored by State Rep. Maureen Mann and Rep.
Ian Raymonds suggest that the majority
of Americans want GMO food labeled now.
 |
| Illustration by Co-op designer Torin Judd |
Since the campaign began in February NH citizens have added over 6,000 signatures to the campaign. Currently the Environment and Agriculture Committee has retained the
bill, so it won't go to the Senate until the fall. Thank
you to all who signed the petition at the Co-op where we gathered well over 600 signatures for this bill. Similar legislation just passed in
the Vermont House. Across the country many such bills have been introduced to state legislatures and the issue is clearly picking up steam beyond just the normal "crunchy" channels. Although Prop 37 was narrowly defeated in California last November, the campaign forced Monsanto and the biotech giants to spend $45 million to defeat the measure. That's a record expenditure by the world's largest toxic pesticide companies to try to prevent consumers from knowing what they're buying. Remember: GMOs are the only products that consumers accidentally purchase without knowing what they're buying.
The Concord Food Co-op belongs to a group called the National Cooperative Grocers Association where we partner with other Co-ops for increased buying power, resource sharing and a bigger political voice than we could have by ourselves. In response to the GMO isue, NCGA had this response. "Last week, we sent a letter to all Co+op Deals
partners reminding them of NCGA's work on the national level to fight the
deregulation of GMOs and calling for the mandatory labeling of GMO foods. This
letter also reinforced the importance of GMO labeling to our co-ops and their
shoppers, and urged vendors to show leadership by supporting consumers' right
to information to make informed purchase decisions. NCGA's category managers have been directed to
require formal written responses, by April 1, from those industry partners that
have been targets of the boycott in response to prop 37. Although we continue
to believe that boycotts of companies whose parent organizations contribute to
anti-labeling campaigns are ineffective due to the small percentage overall
these brands represent of multi-nationals, we are vigorously leveraging our
trade relationships to communicate the values of our co-ops and their shoppers.
We will share a synopsis of the formal responses from the industry that we
receive later next month."
 |
Illustration by Co-op designer Brad Turgeon
|
Last week, Whole Foods announced all
products sold at Whole Foods Market stores containing genetically modified
organisms will clearly labeled within five years. This makes the company the
first national grocery chain to set a deadline for what it terms “full GMO
transparency.” Up to the 2018 deadline, Whole Foods says it will work in
collaboration with its suppliers as they transition to sourcing non-GMO
ingredients or to clearly labeling products with ingredients containing GMOs.
As a co-op, we are dedicated to meeting the needs of all of our customers. We support the right of consumers to make their own purchase decisions. We also support their right to accurate information to make those decisions. However, it would be impossible for our co-op to test every product available in the market for GMOs. We can't tell you which products do contain GMOs, we can only tell you which products do not (certified organic and non-GMO verified). The GMO labeling requirements is one of the most important consumer health legislation introduced in recent years. The Concord Food Co-op will continue to advocate for full disclosure and to keep you informed throughout the legislative process.
No comments:
Post a Comment