http://www.infowars.com/vermonts-landmark-gmo-labeling-target-of-lawsuit-by-foo..
RT.com reported on June 15 that 4 national grade organizations are suing the State of Vermont over their GMO-labeling law which goes into effect July 2016 and they claim the requirement is unconstitutional
The Grocery Manufacturers(the same ones that got caught violating Washington State election laws, GMA) The Snack Food Association(SFA), International Dairy Foods Manufacturers(IDFA) and the National Association of Manufacturers(NAM) say that food made with genetically modified organisms or GMOs are safe and do not need to be labeled. This Vermont legislation passed in April with Gov. Peter Shumlin(D-Vt) signed into law at the beginning of May
"I am proud of Vermont for being the first state in the nation to ensure that Vermonters will know what is in their food. The Legislature has spoken loud and clear through its passage of this bill" he said in a statement after the bill was passed
Legislators knew they were being threatened with a lawsuit by the major food corporations such as Monsanto, Du Pont-who are on the leaders of producing GMO crops- as mentioned before and the Attorney General William Sorrell said he advised the lawmakers while they deliberated the bill that would it lead to a lawsuit from the affected companies "and it would be a heck of a fight, but we would zealously defend the law"-he noted last Thursday in the Burlington Free Press
To defend this, Vermont put aside $1.5 million dollars for legal defense in the measure to be paid with settlements won by the state. However this amount might not be enough to cover the state's legal bills
The groups involved in the lawsuit called the labeling "a costly and misguided measure that will set the nation on a path toward a 50-state patchwork of GMO labeling policies that do nothing to advance the health and safety of consumers"-GMA said in a statement
"With zero justification in health, safety or science, the State of Vermont has imposed a burdensome mandate on manufacturers that unconstitutionally compels speech and interferes with interstate commerce"-said NAM in their own statement
The US Food and Drug Administration ruled in 1994(20 years ago) that food from genetically modified plants is not materially different than from other food. However, critics of GMOs consider them a threat to the environment and a potential health threat. Labeling supporters say the law would give consumers more information about their food than before
"The people of Vermont have said loud and clear they have a right to know what is in their food" said Falko Schilling, a consumer protection advocate with the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, according to the Free Press. "Putting labels on is a reasonable and prudent thing so people can decide for themselves"
BIO, another trade group that includes major GMO producing companies, told Reuters that mandatory labeling laws would make costs go to well over $400 dollars a year for the average household income. The plaintiffs went on to detail about where the costs would come from and how the law would affect interstate commerce.
"They must revise hundreds of thousands of product packages, from the small to the super-sized"-the lawsuit said. "Then, they must establish Vermont-only distribution channels to ensure that the speech Vermont is forcing them to say, or not say, is conveyed in that state"
The Green Mountain State's law does not cover meat, eggs or dairy animals who were fed genetically modified gains, according to the Organic Authority. Restaurants are also exempt. In the court filing, the plaintiffs say that the law's exemptions create big gaps in information, the Free Press reported
The trade groups also took on the state's legal defense funding in the complaint, which requires private money to be used before the state's $1.5 million. "The State's unwillingness to use its own funds to administer and defend Act 120 is express confirmation that Vermont doesn't have a 'state' interest in the survival of the law"- the lawsuit said
But the attorney general disputes the interpretation as did the governor
"We have been gearing up"Sorrell told the Free Press over the phone Thursday
"Now, as we expected all along, the fight will head to the courts" Shumlin said to the Associated Press
Vermont was the first state in the country to pass a "trigger-clause free" GMO labeling law, While Maine and Connecticut passed legislation that included triggers. In the case of the Nutmeg State, four other states, one of which must border with Connecticut, must pass labeling laws as well before its law goes into effect
And Ben and Jerry's is now joining Vermont's fight for GMO labeling:http://rt.com/usa/166607-ben-jerry-vermont-gmo-fight/ by creating a new flavor of ice cream called "Food Fight! Fudge Brownie" in order to raise money to help Vermont fight the lawsuit launched by the GMA and others and they have been making the change of their entire ice cream flavors into non-GMO products and every dollar during the month of July from their purchases at its Burlington and Waterbury ships to help Vermont's legal fund and Jerry Greenfield who is the co-founder of the ice cream company, said in a statement: "This is a pretty simple issue. Vermonter's want the right to know what's in their food, and apparently a bunch of out of state companies don't want us to tell us"and the company has decided to go GMO-free and support Vermont's law
This is about to get interesting folks and something that I will be watching and good for Ben and Jerry's to support the state law as well that took a lot of courage and I am sure consumers of their ice cream will appreciate their efforts
