House File 463 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 463 BY THEDE , ANDERSON , STECKMAN , BERRY , ABDUL-SAMAD , MASCHER , HUNTER , HANSON , and KEARNS A BILL FOR An Act requiring consumer labeling information for food, and 1 including penalties. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 1460YH (2) 85 da/nh

H.F. 463 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 189B.1 Short title. 1 This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Consumer 2 Labeling Information for Food Act” . 3 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 189B.2 Purpose. 4 The purpose of this chapter is to allow Iowans greater 5 access to information about the food they and their families 6 consume, recognizing that such information is indispensable to 7 the exercise of informed consumer choice in a free and open 8 marketplace. 9 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 189B.3 Definitions. 10 As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise 11 requires: 12 1. “Department” means the department of agriculture and land 13 stewardship. 14 2. “Food item” means any raw, cooked, or processed edible 15 substance used or intended for use or sale in whole or in part 16 for human consumption. 17 3. “Genetic engineering” means the process of altering an 18 organism’s genetic material by the application of in vitro 19 nucleic acid techniques or the fusion of cells in a manner 20 that does not occur by natural multiplication or natural 21 recombination. 22 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 189B.4 Labeling standards. 23 1. a. A person manufacturing a packaged food item shall 24 disclose whether the food item was or may have been subjected 25 to genetic engineering when produced. 26 b. A person selling an unpackaged food item on a retail 27 basis shall disclose whether the food item was or may have been 28 subjected to genetic engineering when produced. 29 2. The disclosure required in subsection 1 shall be printed 30 on a label. To every extent possible, the label shall be 31 placed in a clear and conspicuous manner on or in proximity to 32 the food item. 33 a. The label for a packaged food item shall resemble a 34 label listing food ingredients required for that food item or 35 -1- LSB 1460YH (2) 85 da/nh 1/ 3

H.F. 463 comparable food item pursuant to 21 C.F.R. pt. 101. 1 b. The label for an unpackaged food item shall be consistent 2 with the labeling for bulk containers as provided in 21 C.F.R. 3 § 101.100 et seq. 4 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 189B.5 Exception for small businesses. 5 This chapter does not apply to a person who is a small 6 business as defined in section 15.102. 7 Sec. 6. NEW SECTION . 189B.6 Rules. 8 The department shall adopt rules as necessary to implement 9 and enforce this chapter. The department may adopt rules 10 establishing labeling standards for specific food items, or a 11 category of food items, that differ from the labeling standards 12 provided in section 189B.4 as long as such standards provide 13 reasonable notice to the consumer of the information required 14 to be disclosed pursuant to that section. 15 Sec. 7. NEW SECTION . 189B.7 Penalties. 16 1. A person manufacturing a packaged food item who fails to 17 comply with the labeling standards in section 189B.4 is subject 18 to a civil penalty of not more than one hundred dollars for 19 each packaged food item that is unlabeled and ultimately sold 20 or offered for sale on a retail basis in this state. However, 21 the person shall not be subject to a civil penalty of more 22 than ten thousand dollars for the sale or offer for sale of a 23 single manufactured lot of packaged food items, if the person 24 did not know that the packaged food items were subjected to 25 genetic engineering or the failure to comply with the labeling 26 standards was due to a malfunction of the manufacturing process 27 or inadvertence. 28 2. A person selling or offering to sell an unpackaged 29 food item on a retail basis and who fails to comply with 30 the labeling standards in section 189B.4 is subject to a 31 civil penalty of not more than one hundred dollars for each 32 unpackaged food item that is unlabeled and sold or offered 33 for sale on a retail basis in this state. However, the 34 person shall not be subject to a civil penalty of more than 35 -2- LSB 1460YH (2) 85 da/nh 2/ 3

H.F. 463 one thousand dollars for the sale or offer for sale of a 1 single container of unpackaged food items, if the person did 2 not know that the unpackaged food items were subjected to 3 genetic engineering or the failure to comply with the labeling 4 standards was due to inadvertence. 5 EXPLANATION 6 This bill requires food items to be labeled with information 7 that identifies the food items as genetically modified. The 8 department of agriculture and land stewardship is responsible 9 for administering and enforcing the bill’s provisions. A 10 person manufacturing a packaged food item must disclose whether 11 it was or may have been subjected to genetic engineering 12 when produced, and a person selling an unpackaged food item 13 on a retail basis must disclose whether it was or may have 14 been subjected to genetic engineering when produced. The 15 disclosure must appear on a printed label and either affixed 16 to a packaged food item or placed near a container holding 17 unpackaged food items. The label must be based on federal 18 ingredient labeling standards unless the department establishes 19 alternative standards. The bill creates an exception for a 20 small business which has either fewer than 20 employees or 21 an annual gross income of less than $4 million. A person 22 manufacturing a packaged food item who fails to comply with 23 the labeling standards, or a person selling or offering to 24 sell an unpackaged food item on a retail basis and who fails 25 to comply with the labeling standards, is subject to civil 26 penalties. The civil penalty equals $100 per food item that is 27 not labeled in compliance with the bill’s provisions. However, 28 under certain circumstances a manufacturer’s civil penalty is 29 capped at $10,000 for the sale or offer for sale of a single 30 manufactured lot of packaged food items and a retail dealer’s 31 civil penalty is capped at $1,000 for the sale or offer for 32 sale of a single container of unpackaged food items. 33 -3- LSB 1460YH (2) 85 da/nh 3/ 3