INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WOWO): The U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee has given approval to what opponents call the DARK Act, or Deny Americans the Right to Know.
It would block states from putting genetically modified food labeling laws into place, and would reverse strict GMO laws that some states already have passed.
Claire DiMattina, executive director of Food Policy Action, says the DARK Act sends the message that we don’t have the right to know what we’re eating.
“You don’t have to put a label on it, you don’t have to say that there’s GMOs in the food,” she states. “You can, and if you choose to, then it won’t actually be clear and obvious on the back of the package. It will be a QR code that you’ll have to scan with your cellphone.”
The federal bill would preempt state laws by establishing a national voluntary labeling standard for foods made with GMOs, and is similar to the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act that passed the House last summer.
Supporters say making food labeling mandatory would cost grocery shoppers hundreds of dollars more each year.
