Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is asking Congress to pass mandatory GMO labeling. Vilsack, who spoke last week at Commodity Classic, told the National Farmers Union this week Congress should pass mandatory labeling through smart labels, or QR codes, allowing consumers to look up the labeling information. Vilsack said that if Congress finds it impossible to reach agreement on a labeling system, it should authorize the Agriculture Department to do the job. In his speech, Vilsack repeated statements he made Friday at Commodity Classic that labeling of foods containing GMO’s needs to be mandatory, but he did not say, as he did then, that mandatory labeling must be part of the bill in order to get 60 votes in the Senate to end debate for passage, according to the Hagstrom Report. Vilsack did agree with Congress on the state-by-state labeling laws, saying that they would “create confusion and raise food prices.” Vilsack said the challenge is to make sure consumers understand their food is safe.
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