Stars Join National Fight to Label Genetically Engineered Foods in New Video

Washington, D.C. (November 14, 2012) – Emmy Award winners Michael J. Fox and Julie Bowen, and singer Ziggy Marley are featured in a new Just Label It video calling for the FDA to require labeling of genetically engineered (GE) foods.  Fox, Bowen and Marley are joined in the video by 24 other entertainers and advocates and Just Label It (JLI) Chairman, Gary Hirshberg.

The new video sums up the argument JLI has been making throughout the country: every American deserves the right to know about their food and whether they are eating or serving their families food that has been genetically engineered.  JLI is petitioning the FDA to update its 20-year-old voluntary guidelines and require labeling for GE foods.  Today, more than 1.2 million Americans have joined the petition, and a national poll has shown that nine out of every 10 Americans support GE food labeling.

“These artists have joined this fight because we are pursuing a basic right, and a right enjoyed by citizens of 60 other countries, including China, Russia and every nation in the European Union,” Hirshberg said.  “This video will help us remind the FDA that Washington is supposed to be of, by and for the people — not just a handful of chemical companies.”

As the FDA considers whether to grant approval to GE salmon, 2, 4-D corn and a never-browning apple, the video raises concerns about the transparency surrounding GE foods and the lack of long-term testing on the health and environmental effects of the food.  After chemical companies claimed the insecticide used in the first GE corn approved for human consumption would not be digestible, a study later revealed the insecticide was detected in the umbilical cords of pregnant women.

Bowen, a mother of three sons, shows her support for labeling by revealing a sign in the video with the message: “Every modern family has the right to know what’s in their food!”

Marley appears in the video and his song Personal Revolution provides the soundtrack for the three-minute production.

JLI will be using the video in the coming weeks to encourage supporters to sign its petition at www.justlabelit.org.  The site also asks supporters to encourage their members of Congress to support labeling GE foods, oppose any federal or state efforts to restrict the push to label GE foods, and to defeat language in the Farm Bill that would limit the USDA or other federal agencies in regulating GE crops.

The full list of entertainers appearing in the video follows:

Tracy Austin, Tennis Player
Kristin Bauer van Straten, Actor
Julie Bowen, Actor
Josh Bowman, Actor
Jordana Brewster, Actor
Mehcad Brooks, Actor
Chevy Chase, Actor
Caley Chase, Actor
Tom Colicchio, Chef
Frances Fisher, Actor
Michael J. Fox, Actor
Daryl Hannah, Actor
Anne Heche, Actor
Jack Johnson, Singer
Dr. Harvey Karp, Pediatrician
Ali Carter, Actor
Gabriel Mann, Actor
Ziggy Marley, Singer
Carter Oosterhouse, TV Host
Eric Ripert, Chef
Leah Segedie, Blogger
Amy Smart, Actor
Ian Somerhalder, Actor
James Taylor, Singer
Wilmer Valderrama, Actor
Emily Van Camp, Actor
Kimberly Van Der Beek, Healthy Living Advocate
Nick Wechsler, Actor