State authority opposed

The U.S. House of Representatives—which, remember, has a Republican majority—voted to strip state governments of the power to require food labels telling when foods are genetically modified.

The measure was supported by Nevada Republicans Mark Amodei, Cresent Hardy and Joe Heck, a U.S. Senate candidate. Nevada Democrat Dina Titus voted against it, but 45 Democrats supported it.

Labeling bills have been introduced in the Nevada Legislature in the past, but have not been enacted. Labeling requirements have been defeated by voters in California, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. Jackson County, Oregon voters have approved such a law but it has not taken effect while a court appeal is heard.

GM foods critics, who have faced growing criticism on scientific grounds—including cover stories this year in Scientific American, Newsweek, and National Geographic— have been focusing their efforts on labeling and the “right to know.” But they want only certain GMs labeled—those modified in the lab, not in the field.