Shagha Tousi The topic of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has generated plenty of attention across the food manufacturing landscape. Food Manufacturing recently had the opportunity to correspond with Shagha Tousi, a partner at Boston law firm Nutter McClennan & Fish LLP who specializes in Product Liability litigation, on the topic of GMO legislation. What can food manufacturers expect in 2016 given different versions of GMO legislation at the state level around the country? While impossible to predict with any certainty what will happen in 2016, manufacturers can certainly expect that it will be an active year. Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont are just a few of the states that have either proposed or enacted legislation on the topic of GMO labeling requirements. Given the increased attention being paid by the media and consumers to food labeling and the use of genetic engineering in foods, the list of states that will consider GMO labeling requirements is likely to grow. Manufacturers need not panic, however, because many proposed statutes contain multi-state trigger provisions that delay the effective dates of statutes until other states enact similar rules. At the start of 2016, Maine, Connecticut and Vermont were the only states that have passed mandatory labeling legislation, with the legislation in two of those states (Connecticut and Maine) containing multi-state trigger provisions. Bottom line, manufacturers should keep their eye on legislative action at the state level in 2016, since each new state that enacts mandatory labeling legislation could have implications on other states’ legislation taking effect. What about the federal government? Food manufacturers should also keep their eye on federal action in 2016. Last July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act, which is currently pending before the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition […]