Stop the Monsanto Wrecking Ball! Call Today!
Dear Patty,
Today, at 10 a.m. EST, the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture will meet with a mission: to protect Monsanto at all costs by blocking states from requiring companies to label GMOs.
Leading the fight against your right to know is Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), who was quoted today in Politico as saying, “We have to stop this wrecking ball.” Roberts was referring to Vermont’s mandatory labeling law, set to take effect July.
Please call the Senate Agriculture Committee NOW! Phone numbers are listed below.Tell them hands off Vermont’s labeling law! Remind them that they were elected to work for you, not Monsanto.
The only wrecking ball we need to stop is Monsanto’s.
Vermont’s GMO labeling law was supported by a majority of Vermont’s lawmakers and citizens. The courts have refused to delay it, ruling instead that it’s constitutional. And Vermont’s labeling law is hardly the only state law governing labels—there are at least 100 state food laws on the books, including a maple syrup law in Vermont, and a law governing the labeling of wild rice, in Minnesota.
So why can’t Vermont have its own GMO labeling law? Because Monsanto wants the legal right to deceive consumers, as it’s been doing now for decades.
Never have so few politicians worked so hard to protect one corporation: Monsanto. After all, food companies label GMOs, or reformulate their products, in 64 other countries. They could do the same for consumers here in the U.S., as Campbell’s Soup Co. recently confirmed.
The only company that really suffers if consumers choose to avoid foods labeled “produced with genetic engineering” is Monsanto—when food companies start sourcing non-GMO ingredients.
Please call today to stop Monsanto’s GMO labeling law wrecking ball!
If your Senator(s) are on the Agriculture Committee, call their personal offices at the numbers listed below.
If your Senators are not on the Agriculture Committee, please call the committee at (202) 224-2035.
Here’s what you can say when you call:
“I’m calling to express my opposition to Sen. Roberts’ DARK Act, the bill that would Deny Americans the Right to Know about GMOs. Vermont’s law to label foods produced with genetic engineering has been ruled constitutional and must be allowed to take effect on July 1. Congress must not trample on states’ rights. There is no acceptable compromise. The Grocery Manufacturers Association’s so-called SmartLabels (QR codes that can only be read by a smart phone) are discriminatory, expensive and designed to hide information that belongs on the package. If Sen. Roberts and the GMA are really just concerned about a “state patchwork” of GMO labeling laws, then they should pass a mandatory federal labeling law, not a voluntary one that allows food corporations to continue their current practice of non-disclosure.”
Here’s a list of Senate Ag Committee members by state. If your state is listed, please call today!
Arkansas – John Boozman (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Boozman is expected to vote for Robert’s DARK Act to block Vermont’s law to label GMOs. Please call Sen. Boozman at (202) 224-4843.
Colorado – Michael Bennet (D) – For States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Bennet is expected to vote against Robert’s DARK Act to block Vermont’s law to label GMOs. Please call Sen. Bennet at (202) 224-5852.
Georgia – David Perdue (R) – Expected to Oppose States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Perdue’s position on GMO labels is unknown, but given the $484.8K in campaign cash that he’s received from agribusiness, he’s expected to vote for Roberts’ DARK Act to block Vermont’s law to label GMOs. Please call Sen. Perdue at (202) 224-3521.
Indiana – Joe Donnelly (D) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Donnelly wants to block Vermont’s law to label GMOs while giving the Grocery Manufacturers Association a few years to implement its so-called SmartLabel program. Please call Sen. Donnelly at (202) 224-4814.
Iowa – Joni Ernst (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Ernst is agressively pro-GMO and wants to block Vermont’s law from taking effect. Please call Sen. Ernst at (202) 224-3254.
Kansas – Chairman Pat Roberts (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Roberts knows he doesn’t have the 60 votes he needs to pass his DARK Act, so he’s counting on anti-right-to-know Democrats to help him amend his bill. Roberts said his Democratic counterpart, Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) told him she is reluctant to take up the GMO labeling issue because Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vermont), a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, is such a strong opponent. “I told her that I did not ‘feel the Bern’ right then,” Roberts joked. Please call Sen. Roberts at (202) 224-4774.
Kentucky – Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
As majority leader, Sen. McConnell controls what the Senate votes on. He is expected to bring Roberts’ DARK Act quickly to the floor, as soon as it passes out of the agriculture committee. This is the same Senator who says he won’t let any Supreme Court nominee get a confirmation vote, but he will rush this Monsanto protection bill to the Senate floor. Please call Sen. McConnell at (202) 224-2541.
Michigan – Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Stabenow wants to block Vermont’s GMO labeling law from taking effect while the Grocery Manufacturers Association rolls out its so-called SmartLabel program. Please call Sen. Stabenow at (202) 224-4822.
Minnesota – Amy Klobuchar (D) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Due to pressure from the powerful Roundup Ready GMO sugar beet industry Sen. Klobuchar is expected to vote to block Vermont’s GMO labeling law from taking effect. Please call Sen. Klobuchar at (202) 224-3244.
Mississippi – Thad Cochran (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Cochran has taken more money from agribusiness than any other congressperson. He’s certain to support Roberts’ DARK Act. Please call Sen. Cochran at (202) 224-5054
Nebraska – Ben Sasse (R) – Expected to Oppose States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Sasse hasn’t taken a position on GMO labels yet. (Right now, he’s focused on Donald Trump.) But, given the more than $300K in campaign cash he’s taken from agribusiness, he’s expected to support Roberts’ DARK Act. Please Call Sen. Sasse at (202) 224-4224.
New York – Kirsten Gillibrand (D) – Expected to Support States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Gillibrand has flip-flopped back and forth on the GMO labeling issue. She voted against Sen. Sanders’ amendment in support of states’ rights to label GMOs, but then she cosponsored Sen. Barbara Boxer’s (D-Calif.) bill that would essentially make Vermont’s law the national standard. At the last agriculture committee hearing on GMOs, she didn’t reveal her position. In the Presidential race, Gillibrand has endorsed Hillary Clinton who favors the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s so-called SmartLabels over laws like Vermont’s that would require information about GMOs to be printed on the package. Please call Sen. Gillibrand at (202) 224-4451.
North Carolina – Thom Tillis (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Tillis says, “The Vermont solution isn’t a solution, it’s a problem.” He’s certain to support Roberts’ DARK Act. Please call Sen. Tillis at 202-224-6342.
North Dakota – Heidi Heitkamp (D) – For States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Heitkamp says, “My first inclination always is to avoid preemption . . . You can’t fight [GMO labeling] on every front.” She’s expected to vote against Robert’s DARK Act, but she’s getting a lot of pressure from the GMO sugar beet industry to support it. Please call Sen. Heitkamp at (202) 224-2043 and urge her to support states’ rights.
Ohio – Sherrod Brown (D) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Brown voted against Sen. Sanders’ amendment in support of states’ rights to label GMOs. He is under a lot of pressure from Shearer’s, an Ohio-based GMO snack food company, to support the DARK Act. Please call Sen. Brown at (202) 224-2315.
Pennsylvania – Robert P. Casey, Jr. (D) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Casey voted against Sen. Sanders’ amendment in support of states’ rights to label GMOs. In the Presidential race, Casey has endorsed Hillary Clinton who favors the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s so-called SmartLabels over laws like Vermont’s that would require information about GMOs to be printed on the package. Please call Sen. Casey at (202) 224-6324.
South Dakota – John Thune (R) – Against States’ Rights to Label GMOs
Sen. Thune opposes GMO labels and he voted against Sen. Sanders amendment in support of states’ rights to label GMOs. Please call Sen. Thune at (202) 224-2321.
Vermont – Patrick Leahy (D) – For States’ Rights to Label GMOs
On Monday, Sens. Leahy and Sanders issued a joint statement saying Vermont’s GMO labeling law, set to take effect this July, should be allowed to go forward. Please call Sen. Leahy at 202-224-4242 and thank him for his support.
This could be Monsanto’s last chance to stop Vermont’s GMO labeling law. And it’s happening today. Please call today to stop Monsanto’s GMO labeling law wrecking ball!
Dear Patty,
