OAKLAND, Calif. — Chefs are signing on to support a new California petition that pushes for labelling of genetically modified foods sold in retail outlets.
Proposition 37 — The Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act, would require GMO foods sold in retail stores to be labelled with the phrase “partially produced with genetic engineering.” Such labelling would appear on the front or back of packages and would mean the products in question could not be labelled “natural.”
Alice Waters, owner of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., and organic food supporter, posted a letter on the Prop 37 website urging chefs to support the cause. “As chefs, we are on the frontlines of feeding America, and we have an enormous stake in ensuring transparency in our food system. It is our duty to nourish our guests, both in body and soul. However, we can’t prepare the best food when information about the ingredients we purchase is hidden from us with labels that are missing basic facts.”
The petition has already garnered more than 500 endorsements from chefs, including Dan Barber, Mario Batali, Joyce Goldstein, Deborah Madison, Jacques Pépin, Charles Phan and Nora Pouillon.
For more information, visit carighttoknow.org/chefs.
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