Sustainable Pulse requested further details on the FSIS guidelines published in August, due to ‘confusing’ language regarding which products will be able to be labeled non-GMO.

FSIS confirmed that for “single ingredient products, such as a steak, plain chicken breast or ground beef, and the animal that the meat came from was fed GMO feed, that product cannot be labeled as non-GMO.”

However FSIS added; “For a multi-ingredient product, such as a meat pie, a third party organization certifies the product as non-GMO. If the third party’s standards allow for an animal to be fed GMO feed, and the meat from that animal is used in a multi-ingredient product, like a meat pie, then the entire product may be labeled with a non-GMO claim.”

FSIS also confirmed to Sustainable Pulse that dairy products are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), not by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). The FDA has not yet released guidelines for the GMO labeling of dairy products.

Sustainable Pulse Director, Henry Rowlands, stated Thursday; “GMO feed for animals is much more important than the GMO food for people to the Biotech Industry, so it is not surprising that the GMO labeling guidelines released by FSIS give the GMO feed industry a boost, however, this will now cause major confusion for consumers across America.”