Following an emotional debate, the Senate blocked a bill that would prevent states from requiring labeling of genetically modified food Wednesday, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.
The Biotechnology Labeling Solutions Act (S2609), authored by Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., which would create a national voluntary labeling standard for genetically engineered foods, did not pass. Roberts had hoped to pass the bill before Vermont’s mandatory labeling law goes into effect July 1.
Despite getting support from Democrats such as Agriculture Committee members Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Heidi Heitcamp of North Dakota, he didn’t get the 60 votes he needed. California Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein voted against the bill.
The discussion before the vote ranged over issues of farming, food companies and consumers’ right to know what is in their food.
Roberts said it would prevent “a wrecking ball from hitting our entire supply chain,” referring to a potential patchwork of inconsistent state laws. He emphasized that the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Agriculture, and the Food and Drug Administration have all deemed genetically engineered foods safe. “It’s not about safety. It’s not about health. It’s not about nutrition. It’s all about marketing,” he said.
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