How does the government regulate GE crops?
The Federal government decided in 1986 that the United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”), the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) would regulate GE crops using existing statutes. It is the responsibility of those government agencies to make sure GE crops are safe for humans, animals, and the environment. In particular, the FDA is responsible for the food safety of GE crops, while the USDA is responsible for ensuring that GE crops don’t harm agriculture or the environment. The EPA is responsible for the safety of pesticides, including plants such as Bt corn or Bt cotton, which have been engineered to produce a pesticide.
