HF 3349

as introduced - 88th Legislature (2013 - 2014) Posted on 04/22/2014 10:49am

A bill for an act
relating to commerce; providing consumer protection; requiring disclosure
of genetically engineered food and seed; proposing coding for new law in
Minnesota Statutes, chapter 325F.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

new text begin [325F.1792] DEFINITIONS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Applicability. new text end

new text begin For the purposes of sections 325F.1792 to 325F.1796,
the terms in this section have the meanings given.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Cultivated commercially. new text end

new text begin "Cultivated commercially" means grown or
raised in the course of a business or trade and sold or offered for sale within this state or
the United States generally.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Distributor. new text end

new text begin "Distributor" means a person or business engaged in any
method of distributing or transporting a food or food product intended for human
consumption in this state from one place to another that the person or business did not
produce.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Enzyme. new text end

new text begin "Enzyme" means a protein that catalyzes chemical reactions of
other substances without being destroyed or altered upon completion of the reactions.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Genetically engineered and similar terms. new text end

new text begin "Genetically engineered,"
"genetic engineering," "genetically modified," "genetic modification," "genetically
manipulated," "genetic manipulation," or similar terms, when applied to human food,
means a food that is produced from or with an organism or organisms with genetics altered
materially through the application of: (1) in vitro and in vivo nucleic acid techniques,
including recombinant ribonucleic acid (RNA) techniques, recombinant deoxyribonucleic
acid (DNA) techniques, and the direct injection of nucleic acid into cells or organelles;
or (2) methods of fusing cells beyond the taxonomic family that overcome natural
physiological reproductive or recombinant barriers, and that are not techniques used in
traditional breeding and selection such as conjugation, transduction, and hybridization.
"Genetically engineered," "genetic engineering," "genetically modified," "genetic
modification," "genetically manipulated," "genetic manipulation," or similar terms, when
applied to human food, also mean a food derived from an organism that was treated with
a genetically engineered material and a food that contains an ingredient, component, or
other article that is genetically engineered.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin In vitro and in vivo nucleic acid techniques. new text end

new text begin "In vitro and in vivo
nucleic acid techniques" means techniques, including but not limited to recombinant
deoxyribonucleic acid techniques that use vector systems and techniques involving the
direct introduction into the organisms of hereditary material or other nucleic acid molecules,
such as RNAi, prepared outside the organisms, such as microinjection, macroinjection,
chemoporation, electroportation, microencapsulation, and liposome fusion.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 7. new text end

new text begin Manufacturer. new text end

new text begin "Manufacturer" means a person or business engaged in the
production or processing of seed, seed stock, food, or any food product.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 8. new text end

new text begin Organism. new text end

new text begin "Organism" means any biological entity capable of replication,
reproduction, or transferring genetic material.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 9. new text end

new text begin Processed food. new text end

new text begin "Processed food" means any food other than a
raw agricultural commodity and includes any food produced from a raw agricultural
commodity that was processed through canning, smoking, pressing, cooking, freezing,
dehydration, fermentation, or milling.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 10. new text end

new text begin Processing aid. new text end

new text begin "Processing aid" means:
new text end

new text begin (1) a substance that is added to a food during the processing of the food but is
removed from the food in some manner before the food is packaged in a final form;
new text end

new text begin (2) a substance that is added to a food during processing, is converted into
constituents normally present in the food, and does not significantly increase the amount
of the constituents found in the food; or
new text end

new text begin (3) a substance that is added to a food for its technical or functional effect in the
processing but is present in the finished food at insignificant levels and does not have any
technical or functional effect in the finished food.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 11. new text end

new text begin Retailer. new text end

new text begin "Retailer" means a person or business engaged in selling food
from individuals or businesses to the end user. For the purposes of section 325F.1793,
"retailer" does not mean a manufacturer when the manufacturer is also acting as a retailer
with respect to the food item at issue.
new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [325F.1793] DISCLOSURE OF GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOOD
OR SEED.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Disclosure required. new text end

new text begin On and after January 1, 2015, any food or seed
sold or offered for sale in this state is misbranded if it is, or may have been, genetically
engineered and that fact is not disclosed as follows:
new text end

new text begin (1) in the case of the package offered for sale, the words "Produced with Genetic
Engineering" shall be placed on the package offered for sale in a clear and conspicuous
manner by the manufacturer;
new text end

new text begin (2) in the case of a food, food product, or agricultural commodity that is not
separately packaged or labeled, the words "Produced with Genetic Engineering" shall
be placed on the container used for packaging, holding, or transporting in a clear and
conspicuous manner by the manufacturer, and maintained by the distributor, and on
the retail store shelf or bin in which the commodity is displayed for sale in a clear and
conspicuous manner by the retailer;
new text end

new text begin (3) in the case of any seed or seed stock, the words "Produced with Genetic
Engineering" shall be placed on the seed or seed stock container, on the sales receipt, or on
any other reference to identification, ownership, or possession in a clear and conspicuous
manner by the manufacturer or other entity responsible for producing the seed or seed stock.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Exceptions. new text end

new text begin (a) The requirements in subdivision 1 do not apply to a
processed food that would be subject to this section solely because one or more processing
aids or enzymes were produced or derived with genetic engineering.
new text end

new text begin (b) A food package that contains a commodity or food produced in any way with
genetic engineering that does not display a disclosure as required in subdivision 1, clause
(1) or (2), shall be deemed misbranded in this state, except that:
new text end

new text begin (1) the package must not be considered misbranded if it is for a commodity or food
produced by a person who grows, raises, or otherwise produces the commodity or food
without knowledge that the commodity or food was created with seed or other food that
was derived in any way through a process of genetic engineering. The person must obtain
a signed, written statement from the party that sold the seed or food to the person that
the substance was not knowingly genetically engineered, was entirely segregated from,
and has not knowingly been commingled with a food or food component that may have
been created through genetic engineering; or
new text end

new text begin (2) the package will not be considered misbranded if it is a processed food that
would be subject to this disclosure requirement solely because it includes one or more
materials produced with genetic engineering, provided that the genetically engineered
materials in the aggregate do not account for more than nine-tenths of one percent of the
total weight of the processed food.
new text end

new text begin (c) The use of manure as a fertilizer for a raw agricultural commodity must not be
construed to mean that the commodity was produced with a genetically engineered material.
new text end

new text begin (d) A person who initially provides the affirmation required in paragraph (b), clause
(1), may rely on a sworn statement maintained by the person's supplier that contains
the required affirmation.
new text end

new text begin (e) The disclosure requirements of this section do not apply to food intended for
human consumption that is not packaged for retail sale and that either (1) is a processed
food prepared and intended for immediate consumption, or (2) is served, sold, or otherwise
provided in any restaurant or other food facility that is primarily engaged in the sale of
food prepared and intended for immediate consumption.
new text end

new text begin (f) The disclosure requirements of this section do not apply to food consisting
entirely of, or derived entirely from, an animal that was not genetically engineered,
regardless of whether such animal was fed or injected with any genetically engineered
food or any drug that was produced through means of genetic engineering.
new text end

new text begin (g) The disclosure requirements of this section do not apply to food, food products,
seed, or seed stock certified as "organic" under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990,
United States Code, title 7, section 6501, et seq., and its implementing regulations.
new text end

new text begin (h) A person or entity who unknowingly produces, transports, or sells agricultural
commodities that (1) have been affected by the unintended presence of genetically
engineered materials, and (2) were grown on land owned or operated by that person or
entity, shall not be found liable or negligent in any civil proceeding brought to enforce
this chapter.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Rulemaking. new text end

new text begin The commissioner of commerce may adopt rules to
implement this section.
new text end

Sec. 3.

new text begin [325F.1794] THIRD-PARTY PROTECTION.
new text end

new text begin A retailer that sells or advertises a processed food product, when the product fails
to conform to the disclosure requirements under section 325F.1793, shall not be found
liable or negligent in any civil proceeding brought to enforce this chapter. Protection
afforded by this section does not apply to fruit, vegetables, or animals produced with
genetic engineering.
new text end

Sec. 4.

new text begin [325F.1795] MISBRANDING OF NATURAL FOODS PROHIBITED.
new text end

new text begin A food, food product, seed, or seed stock that is subject to disclosure under section
325F.1793 may not be described on the label, packaging, or by similar identification as
"natural."
new text end

Sec. 5.

new text begin [325F.1796] ENFORCEMENT.
new text end

new text begin The commissioner of commerce shall have the powers granted under section 45.027
to enforce sections 325F.1792 to 325F.1796.
new text end