Legislation, Regulations and Standards
Sonoma County Passes Ban on GMO Crops
Voters in Sonoma County, Calif, have passed by a significant margin - 55.9 to 44.9 percent - a ballot initiative that prohibits cultivation of genetically modified crops. Santa Cruz, Humboldt, Trinity, Marin and Mendocino counties have already passed similar measures. The Center for Food Safety reportedly helped draft Measure M, providing legal and scientific counsel over the last year. See the San Francisco Chronicle, November 9, 2016.
Soft Drink Taxes Gain Nationwide Traction
Four cities and one county have reportedly passed taxed on sugar-sweet-ened beverages (SSBs), joining Berkeley, California, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in adopting measures purportedly designed to curb sugary-drink consumption. According to media sources, voters in Boulder, Colorado, passed a 2-cent-per-ounce excise tax on SSB distributors, while those in San Francisco, Oakland and Albany, California, passed a 1-cent-per-ounce levy on distributors. In Cook County, Illinois, the board of commissioners also voted in favor of a 1-cent-per-ounce SSB tax.