Kraft Foods Group Inc. and other packaged-food giants are facing a prospect they’ve dreaded for years: a state law requiring them to label products containing genetically modified organisms. Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin, a Democrat, has vowed to sign a GMO labeling bill on May 8, saying on Twitter that residents deserve to know what’s in their food. The legislation will require certain products sold in the state to note that they may be partially produced with genetic engineering. The move would make Vermont the first state to require the labeling, following failed attempts to pass legislation in California and Washington. And while Vermont’s population is small -- at about 627,000, it has fewer people than the east side of Manhattan -- the law could prompt other states to follow suit. At least 13 states have bills pending as the issue gains momentum, fueled in part by social media.
Posted on: Fri, 09 May 2014 18:26:24 +0000