NOT GOOD:  "The bill has the potential to limit states’ ability to introduce their own labeling laws."

We prefer to know what's in our food.  That's true.  But given the fact that much of our produce comes from big agri-farms it's not that easy to know.  One way we think we're not getting GMO's is by buying "organic."  But what does that mean? Does it mean no pesticides?  Does it mean that the seeds were planted naturally? Again, both terms that are no longer under the common sense of buyers or sellers but under the influence of the FDA and big agra producers.  For purists now there is a tool that allows us to detect if, in fact, any GMO products end up in our foods. But at what costs do we force the issue?  The article below says 

This new development could come in handy depending on the outcome of a GMO labeling bill that just passed in the Senate and is now headed to the House of Representatives. The bill has the potential to limit states’ ability to introduce their own labeling laws. 

Well, does that sound good to you?  If the government forces farmers and manufacturers to label all food, won't this create a huge cost burden?  And to whom do you think that the cost will be transferred to?  That's riiiiight: the customer is going to pay for it.  You think food is expensive now.  Just wait.  The main part of that citation I did not like was this "The bill has the potential to limit states' ability to introduce their own labeling laws."  What's wrong with this? What's wrong is that the federal government is acting like marshal by eliminating local control.  Why should someone in South Los Angeles defer to some government bureaucrat born perhaps in a different country or different state and county tell him how to grow, package, and sell his products?

The article is here.  Continue reading . . . .

The test can focus on the broad picture or on crop-specific GMOs

As the debate over regulating the disclosure of genetically modified foods comes to a head in the United States Congress, the technology around GMO detection continues to evolve. A new test has the potential to identify all known GMOs with minimal cost, Food Safety Magazine reports.

A Bay Area food analytics company called Clear Labs created a test that will allow people to gauge whether food products are, in fact, GMO-free, by determining both the overall percentage of genetically modified ingredients in a product, as well as identifying the specific ingredients themselves.

A broad test will be able to scan for more than 85 percent of known GMOs, while a more focused test will cover crop-specific GMOs, and both will be available to consumers. This is the latest innovation from Clear Labs, which has previously unveiled technology with the potential to end outbreaks of food-related illnesses, and to identify whether purportedly meatless food items actually contain meat.

This new development could come in handy depending on the outcome of a GMO labeling bill that just passed in the Senate and is now headed to the House of Representatives. The bill has the potential to limit states’ ability to introduce their own labeling laws.