Genetically Engineered Salmon?

Before GE Salmon Goes to Market, FDA Needs to Label It

Today, the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard held a hearing on the environmental risks of genetically engineered (GE) fish. In response to ongoing efforts to allow GE foods, such as salmon, to be available without labels, we continue to urge consumers to tell the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) that GE foods must be labeled.

Consumers have a right to know whether the food we eat and feed our families is genetically engineered or not. We have the right to make an informed choice. If genetically engineered salmon is going to be on the market, labeling needs to happen first.

The Just Label It campaign urged consumers to submit comments in support of a legal petition (Docket # FDA-2011-P-0723-0001/CP) that was filed with the FDA and calls for the FDA to label GE foods.  The FDA has 180 days to respond to the petition. Comments can be submitted easily at our website.

More than 450 organizations throughout the country have signed on as partners of Just Label It and more than 410,000 comments have been submitted to the FDA. Just Label It anticipates flooding the FDA with a record one million comments by mid-April.

Unlike most other developed countries – such as 15 European Union nations, Japan, Australia, Brazil, Russia and even China – the U.S. has no laws requiring labeling of genetically engineered foods. Yet polls have repeatedly shown that the vast majority of Americans – over 90 in most studies – believe GE foods should be labeled.

Join us in telling FDA: We have a right to know what’s in our food and we want to know if the salmon we’re eating has been genetically engineered.