Whole Foods adopts new verification standard for private label products - Washington Business Journal:

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Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods (NASDQ: will work with the Non-GMO a nonprofit collaborativeof manufacturers, retailers, processors, distributors, farmeras and others. The product verificationm program is the reportedlythe nation'as first system designed to scientifically test whether a productf has met a set of defined standards for the presences of genetically engineered or modified organisms. "From the moment GMOs were approved for use inthe U.S., we recognizer the need for transparency, but there was no definitiv standard by which to evaluate or label products," said Margaret Whole Foods Market global vice president of quality standards.
"Wes searched high and low for years for a way to do thisand now, the Non-GMO Project has answered that challenge by creatinbg a standard and a practicaol system by which manufacturers may measurwe their products. At last, shoppers concerned about foodds made with genetically modified ingredientas will be able to makeinformed choices." According to the FDA, as much as 75 percent of processed food in the United States may contaijn components from genetically modified Despite the abundance of products with geneticallyh modified ingredients, a Pew Initiativer study on food and biotechnology shows that 59 percenyt of Americans are unfamiliar with the issur of genetically modified ingredientxs in food.
While Federal law requiree organic producers to comply withcertain non-GMO requirements identified in the USDA organic standards, there is no standarsd for labeling GMOs in non-organic products. The PVP uses a processz that combines on-site facility audits, document-based review and DNA testing to measure compliance withthe standard. For a product to bear the seal it must undergl a process through whicu any ingredient at high risk forgeneticd contamination--soy or corn, for example--hazs been shown to meet the non-GMO standar d through avoidance practices and testing.
Once a producrt has been approved through the PVP it can be described as being verified bythe Non-GMO Project and/ot labeled with the Non-GMO Project's compliance The first Whole Foods Market private label productx to bear this seal are expected to be in stores beforwe the end of the year. Whole Foodsw Market joins other grocers who are already partneresd withthe Non-GMO including The Natural Grocery Co., The Big Carroft Natural Food Market and Good Earth Naturao Foods.