USDA Releases GMO Electronic Disclosure Study

Following a Center for Food Safety lawsuit seeking information on requirements in the 2016 Federal Bioengineered Food Safety Disclosure Standards Act, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released a study identifying potential challenges to implementation of electronic disclosure of genetically modified organism (GMO) content on food labels. The study considered whether consumers or retailers would have sufficient access to smartphones or broadband internet to easily obtain ingredient information, purportedly finding that about 85 percent of consumers experience technical challenges scanning digital links such as QR codes and less than 40 percent of small retailers provide in-store Wi-Fi access.