Tell USDA we need stronger regulations that protect the environment, public health, and farmers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced in March that it was abandoning its 2008 proposal that would have updated the 1990s era-regulations currently governing genetically engineered (GE) crops. Instead of continuing with that proposal, USDA is starting from scratch. As part of this new approach, USDA has opened up a public comment period through June 22nd to begin the process of crafting new regulations for GE crops.

Currently, three federal agencies are charged with oversight of genetically engineered crops in the United States: the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). However, regulation is uncoordinated, full of loopholes and gaps, and even entirely voluntary in some cases, putting genetically engineered foods into the fields and onto the market without independent analysis of their potential impacts to public health, farmers, or the environment.

USDA is the agency charged with the most oversight of GE crops, including their environmental and agricultural risks. However, USDA has taken such a narrow view of its authority over GE crops that they have largely refused to analyze or regulate them, and has instead relied largely on those who would profit from GE crops to decide how many and what kinds of tests to conduct, and what information is shared with regulators and the public. There are also no mandated contamination prevention practices, no post-market monitoring of commercialized GE crops, and no protection for those harmed by GE contamination.

This inadequate oversight has left the fox guarding the hen house - and consumers and farmers have paid the price.

Tell USDA we need strong, mandatory regulations that protect non-GE and organic farmers, public health, and the environment from the threats of GE crops!

View the Federal Register notice here: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2015-0036

Subject: Docket No. APHIS-2015-0036 *

Your Letter:*
I urge the USDA to put in place strong, mandatory GE crop regulations that protect the environment, public health, and farmers (APHIS-2015-0036). New regulations are 15 years overdue, and USDA should move quickly to close the existing regulatory loopholes and gaps. For too long the USDA’s oversight of GE crops has left the fox guarding the hen house, and consumers and farmers to pay the price. When crafting new regulations for genetically engineered crops, USDA should, at minimum: - Regulate biotechnology products based on the process by which they are created, using genetic engineering as the trigger for regulatory review to ensure than none evade oversight entirely. - Include known GE crop adverse impacts—such as increased herbicide use, rapid evolution of herbicide-resistant weeds, and transgenic contamination— in all GE crop risk assessments and any potential approval decisions, for experimental field trials or commercial crops. - Enact robust, broad, adaptive regulations that detect, assess, and affirmatively regulate and restrict GE crops, in order to prevent their adverse impacts, such as transgenic contamination, the creation of herbicide-resistant weeds, and increased herbicide use. - Actively monitor, mitigate, and prevent GE crops’ impacts on the environment and farmers. USDA must enact mandatory regulations to properly assess the risks of GE crops and ensure that farmers, the public, and our environment are protected from those risks. USDA has robust authority to regulate GE crops for the harms they cause, and the agency must use it. Our government agencies cannot rely on those who would profit from GE crops to decide how many and what kinds of tests to conduct, and what information is shared with regulators and the public. Thank you for taking my comments under consideration.

Docket No. APHIS-2015-0036

USDA
Email:action@centerforfoodsafety.org

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Original Petition by Center for Food Safety