House bill aims to keep you in the DARK over the GMOs in your food

A bill that would end forever your right to know which foods have been genetically modified (GMO) is one step closer to becoming law.

I’ve been warning you that the so-called Safe and

Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015 – nicknamed the Deny Americans the Right to Know (DARK) Act – is a handout to the billion-dollar food companies.
It would make sure they never have to label their GMO Frankenfoods – even foods harboring residues of Monsanto’s cancer-causing weed-killer Roundup.

But the version of the DARK Act that just passed the House Agricultural Committee has a new, sinister twist you probably haven’t heard about.

Because now the bill is even attacking makers of healthy, non-GMO foods. And it’s ready to bully – and even bankrupt – any company that tries to let you know its foods are GMO-free.

Attacking your right to know“There is nothing in this legislation that denies any food producer any ability to market their product as non-GMO.”

That’s what Kansas Rep. Mike Pompeo is telling everyone about the DARK Act (H.R. 1599) that he introduced to Congress.

And it’s not clear whether Pompeo is lying – or he just hasn’t read the bill in a while.

Because the version of H.R. 1599 that passed the House Agricultural Committee practically guarantees we’ll never see a food labeled as GMO… or even non-GMO… ever again.

And that even includes voluntary labels, such as the kind overseen by the Non-GMO Project, whose seal now appears on about 30,000 products.

“The big food and chemical companies behind this bill want to strip people of the right to know about their food,” admitted Gary Hirshberg, chairman of New England yogurt company Stonyfield.

You see, when the DARK Act was first introduced, it had two goals – to prevent federal labeling of GMO foods and to preempt and stop mandatory labeling laws in states like Vermont.

Of course, the food companies and their political allies soon realized there was a huge problem with the strategy. Even if GMO foods weren’t labeled, private companies and organizations could come together to label non-GMO foods – and you’d still be able to tell the difference.

But now the DARK Act wants to shut that down, too.

The bill says there can’t be any labeling of GMO or non-GMO food unless the FDA determines that there is enough of a “material difference” between the products that such labeling would be important for the public’s health.

Unfortunately, we have a better chance of seeing genetically engineered pigs fly.

As the supporters of the bill well know, the FDA has long claimed that GMO foods are safe and nutritious – even after animal studies linked them to everything from digestive diseases to cancer.

And just last year, Michael Landa, director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the FDA, told a House committee that he doesn’t think differentiating between GMO and non-GMO foods is necessary.

In other words, the labeling of GMO or non-GMO foods will now depend on an FDA ruling that will almost certainly never come… or perhaps the creation of a USDA program that hasn’t even been set up yet. And Pompeo and all his political and corporate pals know it.

And if anyone attempts to label a product as containing no GMOs without the government’s okay, they could face a daily fine of up to $10,000. That makes sure no company could claim its food was non-GMO without practically going bankrupt.

Ninety percent of Americans want to know which foods contain GMOs. But instead of standing up for us, Congress is moving to help Monsanto and its biotech allies control our food supply.

That’s why the DARK Act is also becoming known as the “Monsanto Protection Act.” And why Colin O’Neil, director of government affairs at Center for Food Safety, says it’s a direct attack on your freedom to control what you put in your body.

“At a time when Americans – farmers and consumers alike – are seeking greater diversity and individual control in their food choices, this bill smashes those rights,” he said.

The bill heads to the full House of Representatives next. And at this point, the only force that might stop it in its tracks is the collective wrath of citizens like us who won’t let Congress keep us in the dark.

To send a letter to Congress opposing the DARK Act, click here.

Sources:

“Dark Act approved by the house agriculture committee” NSAC, July 14, 2015, sustainableagriculture.net

“Does the DARK Act block non-GMO claims?” Scott Faber, June 22, 2015, Environmental Working Group, ewg.org