Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN senators might seem as estranged from one another as ever as November’s presidential election gets closer, but the two sides met in early July to broker and pass a bipartisan GMO labeling law just before taking their summer recess. President Barack Obama had pledged to sign the bill once it arrived on his desk, and he ful- filled that promise in August. Some advocates on both sides of the issue were surprised at how things turned out, but said a resolu- tion was desperately needed for what had become a divisive issue. “I don’t think things ever play out in Washington the way people expect,” said Karen Batra, director of communications for the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). “From a political perspective we owe a debt of gratitude to our members of Congress. The bill repre- sents what we think is a good middle ground for both sides. It was a big lift to get this done among all the other discussions taking place.” She calls the final agreement a “workable solution” that gives consumers information without stigmatizing the technology and protects against what threatened to become a patchwork of state laws. The agreement allows food companies to provide content information through the use of on-package symbols, on-package wording or electronic labels, such as quick response codes, that direct consumers to information online. The United States Senate has finally passed a bipartisan GMO labeling law. Here’s what you need to know. Maria Brown WHAT’S LABEL? ON THE President Barack Obama has signed the new GMO labeling bill that advocates say is a landmark piece of legislation. 44 / SEEDWORLD.COM SEPTEMBER 2016