Rejected Wolf Plans & GMO Labeling Meeting

Rejected Wolf Plans & GMO Labeling Meeting. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report.

A federal agency known as Wildlife Services has received a summary judgement stopping it from assisting the State of Washington with the killing of problem wolves. The judge said the agency should have done a better job preparing an environmental analysis. Wildlife Services is a low-profile program within the U.S. Department of Agriculture that is responsible for controlling the number of wolves, grizzly bears, coyotes and other wild animals. Environmental groups cheered the ruling.

The labeling of genetically modified foods could be a nightmare and Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack hopes to gain some insight into the issue early next year with a stakeholder meeting. A group of lawmakers is calling for a uniform GMO labeling system across all 50 states that would set a national standard. Vilsack said he is concerned about "chaos in the market" if more states implement labeling laws with differing provisions and says his meeting would be an effort to find balance in a labeling measure.

VILSACK: I intend to, after the first of the year, convene a meeting of folks who have been reaching out to me. These are not necessarily senators or members of Congress but they are folks who are interested in the labeling issue in a way that doesn't create significant market disruption while at the same time recognizing consumers need to know and right to know the basic information.

That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network of the West.