Genetically Modified Food & GRAS

Genetically Modified foods are discussed elsewhere in this casebook as well. Our concern in this section is the relationship between GM food and safety. As should be no surprise by this point in the book, federal administrative responsibility for addressing genetic modification of foods is split among multiple agencies. The FDA has authority for food safety issues having to do with the GE plants and animals. The EPA has authority to address health and environmental effects and pest-protected plants. The USDA has authority for the effect of GM plans on other plants and animals. In the 1980s, President Reagan created the Domestic Policy Council Working Group to develop a unifying framework for biotechnology. Guide to U.S. Regulation of Genetically Modified Food and Agricultural Biotechnology Products 5, Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology (2001). The process resulted in the "Coordinated Framework for the Regulation of Biotechnology." The organizing principle of the Coordinated Framework was that existing legal and institutional structure could adequately address any concerns about genetic modification.