Senate Agriculture Committee Advances Bill to Block State GMO Labeling Requirements

On Tuesday, March 1, 2016, members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry ("Agriculture Committee") voted to advance a bill that would bar states from imposing labeling requirements on foods containing genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.  The proposed legislation received a bipartisan vote of 14-6.  The legislation proposed by Agriculture Committee Chairman, Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), would authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a national voluntary labeling standard for bioengineered foods.  The bill is designed to "provide[] an immediate and comprehensive solution to the state-by-state patchwork of labeling laws[,]" and would block Vermont's GMO labeling law, which will take effect on July 1, 2016.  The bill now heads to the full Senate for consideration. Agriculture Committee statement on the bill found here. Previous coverage of efforts to enact GMO labeling laws in Oregon and Colorado found here.