MANDATORY LABELING of GMO SHOULD BE A RIGHT. Protecting the health of its citizens is one of the duties of civilized & democratic governments! Let's demand it!

There are probably few people who could point out which foods in the grocery store have been produced with genetically modified organisms. Yet according to the latest polls, nearly everyone--more than 90 percent--of people believe they should have the right to know if their food contains GMOs. That means the majority of Americans support laws that require the mandatory labeling of GMOs.

In July 2016, Vermont will become the first state to enforce a GMO labeling law. Connecticut and Maine have passed laws that will take effect when other states have joined them. Bills for mandatory GMO labels are being considered in 18 states this year: Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

This is democracy in action, addressing the demand of nine out of 10 voters.

 

 

Unfortunately, companies like Monsanto that manufacture GMO seeds and related pesticides don’t like the democratic process and are attempting to shut it down with a bill in Congress that would take away states; rights to label GMOs. The bill H.R. 1599, known by opponents as the DARK Act; Deny Americans the Right to Know;, was introduced by Rep. Mike Pompeo; R-Kan; and is supported by a powerful coalition of industry front groups led by the Grocery Manufacturers Association.

Aside from being a direct attack on states; rights to pass food safety laws, the DARK Act aims to prevent consumers from knowing whether or not their food has been grown with glyphosate, a chemical recently declared a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization.

The biotech and food industries are willing to spend millions to pass the DARK Act. The only way to prevent this bill from passing is for consumers and voters to pressure every member of Congress to reject this bill.

 
I'd also like to add that, cigarettes which are bad for our health, are still selling well, even with health hazard warnings. Why shouldn't GMOs be labeled, so that people know what they eat, and hence decide they want buy them or not. 

 

And lastly, isn't the protection of it’s citizens, one of the major roles of every democratic government?

(This is a letter sent to the following politicians (in Washington) and NY newspapers, on June 3rd, 2015. Senator Schumer, and Gillibrand, Congressman Paul Tonko, Albany TU, The Sch’dy Daily Gazette, The Troy Record, The Saratoga (Saratoga) and the Record (Amsterdam).
You are free to use, copy and paste at will and send to your political representatives and the media, your newspaper, etc.)