FDA Gets $3 Million From Congress To Educate The Public on GMOs

Many of us have seen the above Jimmy Kimmel Live! clip where the show goes around and interviews people on what GMOs (genetically modified organisms) exactly are and why they avoid them in their diet. Those interviewed tend to not even know what GMO stands for, indicating a lack of education on the subject that the U.S. government finally has decided to address.

In the latest appropriations bill passed by Congress, three million dollars were included for a joint campaign between the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for “consumer outreach and education” regarding biotechnology and genetically engineered foods. The campaign hopes to exemplify “the environmental, nutritional, food safety, economic, and humanitarian impacts” of GMO foods.

The funding comes after an open letter from over 50 major food industry and agriculture groups asking the government to fund an effort to rebuff the “tremendous amount of misinformation about agricultural biotechnology in the public domain.” With the majority of scientists in agreement that GMO foods are healthy and safe – in some cases, even safer than non-GMO foods – to consume, 39 percent of the public still believe that GMO foods pose some sort of health risk.

It’s still unclear as to whether such a campaign would prove to be successful, however. A report last year showed that most Americans are informed about GMOs and their benefits, yet 76 percent would still rather not eat them.

Nonetheless, the departments have the money to go forward with this campaign if they wish. No timetable or launch date has been announced yet, but if they’re looking for ideas for a starting point, we got them covered.