Op-Ed: Hawaii to pass GMO labeling bill, but with amendment
Honolulu
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Hawaii might have cause to celebrate, as lawmakers have passed a new
measure in the House Committee on Agriculture, requiring labeling on
genetically modified food. But will the final bill be everything it was
hoped to be?
Basically supporters of the bill say that they deserve to know whether the food they are buying has been genetically modified.
Jessica Mitchell, a parent who is in favor of the bill, was quoted as
stating in an AP report that, “I and many mothers deserve the right to
know what we are feeding our children.”
After numerous proponents of the bill testified before the House committee, it passed its second reading on Thursday, but the bill was amended so as to only apply to produce imported from outside Hawaii.
There was
some conjecture by opponents that labeling would cause a rise in food
prices. However, house agriculture committee Chairwoman Jessica Wooley
says that as the bill only affects produce brought in from outside
Hawaii, it will benefit local farms and won’t cause food prices to rise.
However, Occupy Monsanto Maui is reporting disappointment with the amendment on their Facebook page.
They state that the amendment "only covers incoming raw agricultural
products, which means that it basically covers very little, except a
little crookneck squash, any Monsanto sweet corn brought fresh into the
state, or if a non-browning GMO apple is approved." So maybe it is not
time to get too excited.
Recently a California labeling initiative, Proposition 37,
lost by a small margin after Big Pesticide donated $45 million in
advertising against GMO labeling. Other states that are also trying for
labeling are New Mexico and Washington.
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