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ARLINGTON, VA – On behalf of the nation’s food retailers and wholesalers, Food Marketing Institute (FMI) welcomes the publication of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) final National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard rule. The rule provides a consistent way to provide transparency regarding the foods we sell and allow our customers across the country the means to learn more about grocery products containing bioengineered ingredients.

FMI President and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin offered the following statement on the release of the final rule:

“FMI commends USDA for introducing a more precise vocabulary into the public discourse regarding biotechnology in food production. We look forward to working with the Department to promote consumer understanding of the terminology in this rapidly emerging field.

“FMI enthusiastically supported the legislative process to pass the 2016 bill calling for the establishment of a clear and uniform national standard that would provide grocery shoppers with understandable information regarding products containing bioengineered ingredients. We have been working closely with USDA and our coalition partners throughout the supply chain to ensure the final rule provides consistency and clarity to the customers shopping in any of our membership’s 33,000 retail food stores.

“We look forward to continuing our collaboration with USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service and food retailers and wholesalers throughout the U.S. to roll out this important new disclosure standard to ensure our customers have access to the information that is important to their lifestyle choices. We will thoroughly review the final rule to better understand the new requirements it contains.”