Why aren biotech foods labeled?
In the U.S., food labels reflect composition and safety, not the way the food is produced. Presently biotech foods do not require labeling because they have been judged to have the same nutritional content as similar non-biotech foods and no changes in allergens or other harmful substances. Additionally, some ingredients, such as oils derived from biotech crops, are identical to those from non-biotech crops. Future biotech products are expected to have improved nutritional value, and will be labeled to that effect. If biotech foods were required to be labeled, the labeling would not be based on nutritional quality or safety, but on the way those foods were produced. Should the method of production require labeling? Conventionally produced agricultural products do not require labels describing how they were produced. If a product is certified as organic it may be labeled as such for marketing purposes, but such a label does not mean that the product is safer to eat or that it was grown
