Bill Text: HI HR54 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Agriculture; Genetically Modified Organism

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-3)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-03-09 - (H) Referred to AGR/ERB, HLT, referral sheet 42 [HR54 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2012-HR54-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	54
TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2012
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

Urging food producers to voluntarily label their products AS being free of genetically modified organisms.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, since their commercial introduction in 1996, crops containing genetically modified organisms, commonly referred to as GMOs, have been put into widespread production by growers in the United States and throughout the world; and

 

     WHEREAS, benefits of genetically engineered plants include increased resistance to insects and disease, enhanced drought tolerance and greater crop yields; and

 

     WHEREAS, oversight of GMOs is provided by the United States Food and Drug Administration, Department of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Agency; and

 

     WHEREAS, biotechnology developed by University of Hawaii researchers helped save the papaya industry from devastating effects of the papaya ringspot virus; and

 

     WHEREAS, despite the benefits of producing food through agricultural biotechnology, there are also significant concerns about possible negative impacts on public health, the environment and the economy; and

 

     WHEREAS, specific concerns about GMOs include introducing allergens and toxins into food, lessening nutritional content and contaminating non-genetically engineered crops; and

 

     WHEREAS, some of the most widely planted crops containing GMOs are soybeans, cotton, rice and corn; and

 

     WHEREAS, GMOs are present in many processed foods that contain high-fructose corn syrup, such as carbonated drinks, breakfast cereals and popular snack products; and

 

     WHEREAS, it is important for the people of Hawaii to be well informed when making nutritional decisions for themselves and their families; and

 

     WHEREAS, food companies in the United States are presently not required to label their products as containing GMOs; and

     WHEREAS, indicating the presence or absence of GMOs through product labeling helps consumers make informed decisions about the foods they buy; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-sixth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2012, that local food producers are urged to voluntarily label their products as "No GMOs," if in fact these products have no genetically engineered ingredients; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Maui Chamber of Commerce, Honolulu Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, Kauai Chamber of Commerce and Molokai Chamber of Commerce, along with the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation, Hawaii Farmers Union United, Hawaii Food Manufacturers Association, Hawaii Crop Improvement Association, Hawaii Cattlemen's Association, Hawaii Cattlemen's Council, farmers market operators and other organizations involved with made-in-Hawaii food production.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:

Report Title: 

Agriculture; Genetically Modified Organism