Posted December 15, 2014
Stacey
Forshee, a member of Farm Bureau, asked Congress to help consumers understand
the differences between food safety concerns and “marketing ploys” by
passing H.R.
4432
, the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act, according to a Wisconsin Ag
Connection article available here.
Food Navigator also published an article available here
and Pal-Item here.
"As a
hard-working American family who lives off the land and the products it
provides, we would never allow a product we grew or raised to enter the food
supply unless we knew it was safe," said Forshee. She and her husband are farmers
and cattle ranchers in north central Kansas, and Forshee said that she has witnessed
firsthand the “marked benefits of biotechnology crops, including higher yields
over fewer tillable acres, reduced pesticide use and improved soil
conservation."
Forshee
praised the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) “science-based approach to
labeling food products for safety, health, and nutrition information,” but
worries consumers will be misled, according to Pal-Item.
Labeling
foods with biotechnology traits “will mislead consumers into believing such
food products are materially different, create undue risk and should be avoided
— all of which are scientifically false,” she said.
Since
1996, more than 17 million farmers have increased the world food supply by 110
million tons of soybeans and 195 million tons of corn. Farmers have also reduced
pesticide use by 1.2 billion pounds by planting GMO crops.
Mandatory
genetically modified (GMO) food labeling would increase the cost of food by
approximately $500 a year per family, which could put even more burdens on
families that already struggle with grocery bills, according to Food
Navigator.
For more information on food safety, please visit the
National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
