For the first time ever, the US will have a national standard when it comes to labeling genetically modified ingredients. President Barack Obama signed into law a bill requiring manufacturers to declare on the label if a product contains genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
The legislation—S. 764, which passed in both the House and Senate in July—compels manufacturers to disclose if a product contains genetically modified ingredients through the use of a text label, symbol or electronic code readable by a smartphone such as a QR code. The bill supersedes the Vermont GMO labeling law, which went into effect July 1 and preempts other states from passing similar legislation.