Perdue: USDA May Miss GMO Labeling Rule Deadline

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told representatives from the National Association of Farm Broadcasting last week that his agency may not make the July 29 deadline to publish a final rule on labeling genetically modified food. According to Feedstuffs, he said during the April 24 meeting that while the department has been working toward that goal, he would like to be closer to meeting it than the department is now.

“I had insisted last year when I got here that we would meet that deadline,” Perdue reportedly said. “I’m still hoping for [completion] this summer, but it does not look like we will meet the deadline that we had insisted upon.”

Perdue blamed White House Office of Management & Budget reviews for the delay, even though he said USDA had asked for an expedited process. “We turned in our papers on time; the teachers didn’t grade them on time,” he said.