House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson today made the following statement after the House passed H.R. 1599, the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015. The bipartisan bill establishes a voluntary, nationwide, USDA-administered certification program for labeling genetically engineered food products.

“H.R. 1599 is a reasonable, workable solution that balances consumer demand for information with what we know about the safety of the food we produce. It prevents the unworkable scenario of state-by-state, county-by-county or even city-by-city mandatory labeling laws.

“Importantly, the bill changes the current review process to ensure that every new genetically engineered plant destined to enter the market goes through an FDA safety review. The bill also sets a national, uniform standard to define genetically engineered products. Food producers and processors choosing to market their products as non-GE will be able to do so with a USDA-backed label.”
 

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Video: Peterson floor speech in support of H.R. 1599