Time’s up! Vermont GMO labeling law takes effect Presented by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health

With help from Emmet Livingstone, Jenny Hopkinson and Helena Bottemiller Evich

VT GMO LABELING LAW IS LIVE: Well, it’s happened. Despite lawsuits and intense lobbying in Washington, Vermont’s first-in-the-nation GMO labeling law takes effect Friday. While enforcement won’t start until next year — if the measure is still standing by then — Vermonters will celebrate Friday with a lunchtime fete on the statehouse lawn complete with speeches from Gov. Peter Shumlin and Sen. Pat Leahy, and a little Ben & Jerry’s ice cream (which sources tell MA may be served from the company’s converted Tesla).


But hanging over the festivities is the upcoming cloture vote Wednesday in the Senate on the compromise bill brokered by Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts and ranking member Debbie Stabenow, which would preempt the state law. Vermont lawmakers are expected to push back against the measure, but momentum seems to be behind the bill. In a test vote late Wednesday, senators backed moving ahead with the measure, 68-29. The full vote count is here.

— Farm-state Dems showed up: Votes could change when the bill comes up for cloture and then a vote on final passage, but farm-state Democrats largely supported the Roberts-Stabenow compromise Wednesday. Seven of the nine Senate Agriculture Committee members were in favor, with only Vermont's Leahy and New York’s Kirsten Gillibrand opposed. In the Democrats’ ‘yea’ column: Wisconsin’s Tammy Baldwin; Colorado’s Michael Bennet; Ohio’s Sherrod Brown; Bob Casey of Pennsylvania; Delaware’s Tom Carper and Chris Coons; Indiana’s Joe Donnelly; California’s Dianne Feinstein; Minnesota’s Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar; North Dakota’s Heidi Heitkamp; Florida’s Bill Nelson; Missouri’s Claire McCaskill; Michigan’s Stabenow and Gary Peters; and New Hampshire’s Jeanne Shaheen.

— Maine says ‘yea’, Conn. ‘nay’: Maine Sens. Susan Collins (R) and Angus King (I) also voted for the bill to proceed despite their state’s yet-to-be-implemented GMO labeling law. Connecticut Democrats Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy both voted against it. Connecticut was the first state to pass a GMO labeling law, though it also has yet to take effect.

— Three GOP holdouts: Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan split with their party and opposed the vote over concerns the bill doesn’t require labeling of GMO salmon. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who is outspokenly pro-state’s-rights, also was a no.

HAPPY FRIDAY, JULY 1! Welcome to Morning Ag, where your host jumped out of her chair in response to news that Adnan Syed, whose murder conviction was the subject of “Serial,” was granted a retrial. You know the deal: thoughts, news, tips? Send them to [email protected] or @ceboudreau. Follow the whole team at @Morning_Ag.

PROGRAMMING NOTE: Due to the July Fourth holiday, Morning Agriculture will not publish on Monday, July 4. Our next Morning Agriculture newsletter will publish on July 5.

VT RETAILERS ANXIOUS: Many retailers in the Green Mountain State, particularly those that make food in-house or have delis, are confused about how to comply with the state’s GMO labeling law, reports The Burlington Free Press. Their anxiety stems from the fact they assumed the requirements would only apply to manufacturers, Vermont Retail and Grocers Association President Jim Harrison told the paper. And Dannon has asked retailers to label its yogurt for them because it won’t start doing so until August. There are also concerns that some products — from soda and marshmallows tmo mayonnaise and baby formula — will be temporarily unavailable or pulled from the state completely. Read the story here.

AG LEADERS MEET WITH CLINTON STAFF, REACH OUT TO TRUMP: The CEOs of about a dozen trade groups have banded together to engage the presidential candidates more directly on food and ag issues, which have largely been absent from debate this election cycle. Last week, leaders met with top Hillary Clinton staffers in Brooklyn, and they hope for a sit-down with Donald Trump’s campaign soon.

“It was a great opportunity for agriculture to put forward some concepts and needs for future policy,” said attendee Barbara Glenn, CEO of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. “The purpose was really to have a dialogue.”

The meeting with Clinton staff, first reported by Agri-Pulse, included representatives from a dozen agriculture groups, including Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation; Jay Vroom, president and CEO of CropLife America; and representatives of the American Soybean Association, the National Farmers Union and the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives. The industry bigs met for more than an hour with a handful of top Clinton policy and communications staff, including Matt Paul, a former adviser to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

'Unprecedented' engagement: Marshall Matz, an attorney with the firm Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Matz and Clinton supporter who helped organize the meeting, called it "important both for American agriculture and for the campaign. ... To the very best of my knowledge, it was unprecedented to have a meeting between the major agriculture CEOs and Democratic nominee's campaign staff," said Matz, who attended the meeting. Pros can read Helena and Jenny’s story here.

EPA SEEKS EXTENSION OF CHLORPYRIFOS DECISION: The EPA has asked a panel of federal judges to give the agency six more months to issue a final decision on whether to revoke the tolerances for chlorpyrifos on agricultural products, a move that could effectively ban the chemical for farm use. In a status report Wednesday, the agency says it needs more time than the current Dec. 30, 2016 court-set deadline to complete assessments of drinking-water exposures and risks to children.

“If EPA is not afforded additional time, it would likely have to take final action on the administrative petition (i.e., a final rule or denial) without seeking public comment on any additional data considered or analyses conducted after the Proposed Rule was published for comment in November 2015,” the agency says in its brief. What’s more, it adds: “Six months represents a modest extension that ensures that EPA has the time necessary for addressing both the public process and extremely complex science associated with this action while holding EPA to an expeditious time-frame for completing an action that relates to the protection of public health.” The brief is here.

CDC OFFICIAL DEPARTING AMID QUESTIONS OVER LINKS TO SODA INDUSTRY: A director at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday reportedly announced she is leaving the agency, a move that came two days after the group U.S. Right to Know published a story in The Huffington Post revealing emails that connected the public health official to a former Coca-Cola scientific and regulatory affairs leader. Barbara Bowman, director of CDC’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, announced her departure in an email to colleagues that said she decided to retire last month, reported U.S. Right to Know, which advocates on agricultural issues like mandatory GMO labeling and against synthetic pesticides. The group obtained e-mails through a FOIA request that detailed how Alex Malaspina, a former Coca-Cola official who founded the International Life Sciences Institute, received advice from Bowman about who to contact to cultivate a better relationship with the World Health Organization. Read the blog post here.

NUTRITION LABELS COMING TO JOHNNIE WALKER RED: Diageo, the alcohol giant, said Thursday it would roll out per-serving alcohol content and nutritional labels for its Johnnie Walker whiskey line. The move is the latest in Diageo’s ambitious plan to label all of its alcohol products consistently and in an understandable way. Crown Royal and its new Smirnoff Ice Electric already have labels. Smithwick’s will start the labeling next month, and after that, at the beginning of 2017, cans of Guinness Draught sold in Ireland. Diageo’s statement is here.

BELGIUM BEER WOES: Anheuser-Busch InBev got some bad news Thursday when Margrethe Vestager, the European commissioner for competition, announced she was launching an antitrust probe to explore whether the beer giant was preventing suppliers in France and the Netherlands from reselling beers into Belgium in order to maintain high prices in its home market. Her office issued a statement saying its “preliminary view” was that AB InBev may be pursuing a “deliberate strategy” by manipulating packaging and offering targeted discounts to restrict imports into its home country. The European Commission cleared the $102 billion Anheuser-Busch InBev and SAB Miller merger in May.

BREXIT CIDER: Merging America’s independence from Britain with Britain’s independence from the EU, The Boston Beer Company, the maker of Samuel Adams beers as well as Angry Orchard hard ciders, applied to trademark the term “Brexit” last Friday, the day after the British vote. The company’s trademark application, filed on an intent-to-use basis, is for hard cider. Others are lining up to use the term on products, too, including a Colorado company that wants it for dietary supplements. More here.

JEFFERSON MUST HAVE HAD A COASTER: While we’re on the subject of Independence Day, the Beer Institute has marked the Fourth of July celebration by releasing 10 facts about beer and the holiday. Skipping to no. 2 on the list: “Thomas Jefferson was said to have composed the first draft of the Declaration of Independence over a cold draft at the Indian Queen tavern in Philadelphia.” Someone should check that document for beer-mug rings! See the whole list here.

A SWEET OFFER FOR KISSES: Snack giant Mondelez made a $23-billion bid for Hershey on Thursday, causing the latter’s share price to soar. Historically, the Hershey Trust, which controls the Hershey Company, has been opposed to selling it. However, Mondelez is making some concessions to sweeten the deal, including protecting jobs and keeping the name, reports The Wall Street Journal. If the merger were to happen, it would create the biggest candy company in the world. Check out the story and an illustration of Hershey’s resulting share hike.

GREENPEACE RESPONDS TO NOBEL LAUREATES: Greenpeace is pushing back against a letter from 107 Nobel Laureates that told the group to back off its opposition to GMOs and in particular golden rice. Greenpeace campaigner Wilhelmina Pelegrina shot back: “Accusations that anyone is blocking genetically engineered ‘Golden’ rice are false. Golden’ rice has failed as a solution and isn’t currently available for sale, even after more than 20 years of research. As admitted by the International Rice Research Institute, it has not been proven to actually address Vitamin A Deficiency. So to be clear, we are talking about something that doesn’t even exist. ... Corporations are overhyping ‘Golden’ Rice to pave the way for global approval of other more profitable genetically engineered crops.”

YEE-HAW: Mark your calendars and saddle up! The Senate has declared July 23 as National Day of the American Cowboy after passing a resolution by unanimous consent this week. It’s a tradition that started in 2005 to coincide with Cheyenne Frontier Days in Wyoming.

MA’s INSTANT OATS:

— Mark Crumpacker, the top marketing executive that Chipotle Mexican Grille tasked with running its campaign to win back consumer trust after its E.coli outbreak last year, was placed on administrative leave after he was indicted as an alleged buyer in a cocaine ring takedown in New York City, The Wall Street Journal reports.

— The FDA wants everyone to stop eating raw cookie dough, Mashable reports.

— Scientists predict that more than 10 percent of the world's population will experience micronutrient deficiencies in the coming decades if global fish catches continue to decline, NPR reports.

— Hundreds of leaders gathered at Harvard’s Food Law and Policy Clinic on Thursday to share ideas about reducing food waste, Waste Dive reports.

— In case you missed it, Amazon has started selling perishable private-label foods like coffee and baby food, The Wall Street Journal reports.

THAT'S ALL FOR MA! See you again soon! In the meantime, drop your host and the rest of the team a line: [email protected] and @ceboudreau; [email protected] and @jennyhops; [email protected] and @hbottemiller; [email protected] and @iankullgren; [email protected] and @mjkorade; and [email protected] and @jsonhuffman. You can also follow @POLITICOPro and @Morning_Ag on Twitter.

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