Whole Foods to label for genetic engineering
March 08, 2013 | 05:48 PM
Whole Foods announced today that by 2018, all products in its stores in the United States and Canada will have labels disclosing if they contain genetically engineered ingredients.
Whole Foods would be the first national chain of grocery stores in the United States to label for genetic engineering, also known as genetic modification. The Environmental Working Group praised the move.
Ken Cook
“Today’s announcement by Whole Foods will give consumers the information they need to make the right choice for their families. Whole Foods recognizes that consumers want to know more, not less, about their foods,” said Ken Cook, president of EWG and a board member of Organic Voices, a national nonprofit organization
“This announcement will add new urgency to efforts to require GE labeling in more than 20 states.”
Cook also said that the move would put “new pressure on the Obama administration to fulfill the promise” that the group believes then-presidential candidate Barack Obama made in 2007.
A spokeswoman for the Biotechnology Industry Organization said that it considers the Whole Foods labeling plan to be voluntary and that the group does not oppose voluntary labeling.
“BIO fully supports the voluntary labeling of products as ‘certified organic’ and ‘Non-GMO’ to meet the demands of consumers in the marketplace who value those products,” Karen Batra, the director of food and agriculture communications said in an email.
But she added that BIO believe mandatory labeling government labeling requirements should be limited to nutritional content or health-related characteristics.
“Most of our nation’s scientific authorities have weighed in on this issue and agree with the FDA that, since there is no difference between foods improved with biotechnology and their conventional and organic counterparts, mandatory labeling a product ‘GMO’ can only serve to mislead or confuse consumers,” Batra said.
Whole Foods would be the first national chain of grocery stores in the United States to label for genetic engineering, also known as genetic modification. The Environmental Working Group praised the move.
“Today’s announcement by Whole Foods will give consumers the information they need to make the right choice for their families. Whole Foods recognizes that consumers want to know more, not less, about their foods,” said Ken Cook, president of EWG and a board member of Organic Voices, a national nonprofit organization
“This announcement will add new urgency to efforts to require GE labeling in more than 20 states.”
Cook also said that the move would put “new pressure on the Obama administration to fulfill the promise” that the group believes then-presidential candidate Barack Obama made in 2007.
A spokeswoman for the Biotechnology Industry Organization said that it considers the Whole Foods labeling plan to be voluntary and that the group does not oppose voluntary labeling.
“BIO fully supports the voluntary labeling of products as ‘certified organic’ and ‘Non-GMO’ to meet the demands of consumers in the marketplace who value those products,” Karen Batra, the director of food and agriculture communications said in an email.
But she added that BIO believe mandatory labeling government labeling requirements should be limited to nutritional content or health-related characteristics.
“Most of our nation’s scientific authorities have weighed in on this issue and agree with the FDA that, since there is no difference between foods improved with biotechnology and their conventional and organic counterparts, mandatory labeling a product ‘GMO’ can only serve to mislead or confuse consumers,” Batra said.
