Coalition House Letter
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July 11, 2016 The Honorable Paul Ryan The Honorable Nancy Pelosi Speaker Minority Leader U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515 Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable Kevin McCarthy The Honorable Steny Hoyer Majority Leader Minority Whip U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515 Washington, D.C. 20515 Dear Speaker Ryan, Minority Leader Pelosi, Majority Leader McCarthy, and Minority Whip Hoyer, We, the undersigned organizations, represent all segments of the U.S. food chain—producers, cooperatives, agribusinesses, processors, seed makers, handlers, food and feed manufacturers, restaurants, lenders, and retailers. It is vitally important for the House to call up and pass S. 764, the Senate-passed legislation on biotech disclosure, in order to avoid the economic costs of a patchwork of state laws that will directly impact consumers, farmers, and the entire food value chain. We strongly support S. 764, which builds on H.R. 1599, the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act, introduced by Representatives Pompeo and Butterfield, which the House passed a year ago with overwhelming bipartisan support. The issue of biotech disclosure is one of the most significant issues that the agriculture and food industry has faced in recent years. The U.S. agriculture and food industry creates over 17 million jobs, representing nearly 1 in 10 jobs. This very system—which produces the most abundant, the highest quality, and the most affordable food in the world—will be threatened with large economic costs without a national uniform solution on this issue. The application of biotechnology to agricultural production has led to increased crop yields, decreased use of pesticides, and lower food costs for consumers. Congress must ensure we avoid senseless mandates that will thwart agricultural advancement and hurt consumers—especially those low income Americans who can least afford to pay more to feed their families. We strongly support S. 764 and ask that you schedule floor time and provide expedited consideration of this important and timely legislation. We pledge to work with Members on both sides of the aisle to ensure quick passage of this bipartisan proposal. Sincerely, 1st Choice Seeds AC Horn Manufacturing 4 T's Discount Grocery LLC ACME A. R. Sandri Inc. Adams & Brooks, Inc. Abbott Adisseo North & Central America AEQUOR, Inc. American Society of Sugar Beet Technologists Ag Plus, Inc. American Soybean Association Ag Processing Inc American Sugarbeet Growers Association Ag View FS Amigos AgFirst Farm Credit Bank Amity Technology Ag-Land FS, Inc. Amplify Snack Brands AgPreference, ACA Anderson Erickson Dairy Company AgriBank, FCB Apple Processors Association Agribusiness & Water Council of Arizona Apricot Producers of California Agribusiness Association of Iowa AquaBounty Technologies Agribusiness Council of Indiana ARBEV Agricultural Cooperative Council of Oregon Archer Daniels Midland Company Agricultural Council of California Ardent Mills Agricultural Retailers Association Arizona Beverage Association Agri-Mark, Inc. Arizona BioIndustry Association (AZBio) Agrivida, Inc. Arizona Crop Protection Association Agropur Inc. Arizona Farm Bureau Federation Airoso Dairy Arizona Food Marketing Alliance Alabama Beverage Association Arkansas Grocers and Retail Merchants Association Alabama Council of Cooperatives Arkansas Soybean Association Alabama Farmers Cooperative, Inc. ARYZTA Alabama Grocers Association Asenzya Alabama Retail Association Asher’s Chocolate Co. Alabama Soybean and Corn Association Aspinwall Cooperative Company Alaska State Chamber of Commerce Associated Food and Petroleum Dealers Albertsons Associated Milk Producers Inc. Albertsons Market Associated Oregon Industries Alliance Grain Co. Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. Allied Agronomy, Inc. Aurora Cooperative Allied Cooperative Automatic Rolls of Baltimore, Inc. Allied Energy, Inc Automatic Rolls of New England Alpha Baking Company Automatic Rolls of New Jersey ALPS Automatic Rolls of North Carolina, Amalgamated Research LLC Aviation Deli & Fine Foods LLC Amalgamated Sugar Company B & G Fresh Market American Bakers Association B&K Enterprises/Alexandria CM American Beverage Association Baird Seed Company American Crystal Sugar Company Bake Rite Rolls, Inc. American Dairy Coalition Bakto Flavors, LLC. American Feed Industry Association Baptista's Bakery American Frozen Food Institute Barrel O'Fun Snack Foods American Fruit and Vegetable Processors and Growers CoalitionBarry Callebaut Americas American Mothers BASF Corporation American Pulse Association Bayer Corporation American Seed Trade Association Bazzini LLC Beck’s Hybrids California Beet Growers BEER NUTS Brand Snacks California Canning Peach Association Beet Sugar Development Foundation California Citrus Mutual Bel Brands USA California Dairies, Inc. Belgrade Coop Association California Farm Bureau Federation Betaseed, Inc. California Grocers Association Better Made Snack Foods California League of Food Processors Beverage Association of Tennessee California Life Sciences Association Beverage Association of Vermont California Retailers Association Big Horn Basin Beet Growers California Tomato Growers Association, Inc. Big Horn County Sugar Beet Growers California-Nevada Beverage Association Big Johns Calise Bakery Big Star of Tallulah, Inc./Doug's Mkt Calorie Control Council Big Y Foods, Inc. Can Manufacturers Institute Bill Barr & Company, Inc. Canned Food Alliance Bill's Family Foods Capital City Fruit Company, Inc. Bimbo Bakeries USA Caravan Ingredients, Inc. Bio Nebraska Life Sciences Association Cargill, Inc. Biocom Carlin Group BioKansas Carney's BioNJ Carolina Ingredients BioOhio Carolinas Cotton Growers Cooperative, Inc. Bioscience Association of North Dakota Carolinas Food Industry Council BioSTL Carroll Service Company Biotechnology Innovation Organization Carrs BioWV Cash's Food Inc Birnn Chocolates of Vermont Cass Clay Creamery Biscomerica Corporation Castle Retail Black River Kwik Stop Cavendish Farms Blackford Foods CCFE Blue Diamond Growers Centra Sota Cooperatives Bob's Food City Central Prairie Cooperative BOB'S SUPER-SAVER, INC/Country Mart Central Valley Ag Bongards’ Creameries Ceres Solutions Bowman’s Market Certco Inc. Brookshire’s Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii Bruning Grain and Feed Co Inc. Champion Seed Bryce Corporation Champlain Oil Company Bunge North America Cheeze Kurls, Inc. Business Council of Alabama Chestnut Street Market C & J Foods Chippewa Valley Bean Co, Inc. C&S Wholesale Grocers Christian County FS Cabbage Inc. CHS, Inc. Calcot, Ltd. Claeys Candy Inc Calico Cottage, Inc. Clark's for Shopping, Inc. Clarksburg Supermarket Cumberland Dairy Inc. Clyde’s Donuts Cumberland Farms, Inc. Co-Alliance, LLP D &R Foods CoBank DairiConcepts, L.P. Coca-Cola Bottling Company Consolidated Dairy Business Association of Wisconsin Coca-Cola Bottling Company, United Dairy Business Milk Marketing Cooperative Coca-Cola of Northern New England Dairy Farmers of America, Inc. Colorado Beverage Association Dairymen's Marketing Cooperative, Inc. Colorado BioScience Association Dale L. Trahan Enterprises, Inc Colorado Cooperative Council Dalhart Consumers Cooperative Colorado Corn Growers Association Danvers Farmers Elevator (Danvers, IL) Colorado Dairy Farmers Davis Family Dairies Colorado Farm Bureau Davis Food and Drig Colorado Potato Administrative Committee Area II Davisco Business Unit of Agropur Inc. Colorado Retail Council Dawn Foods Colorado Sugarbeet Growers Dean Foods Company Colteryahn Dairy DeKalb Feeds, Inc. Columbiana Foods Inc. Del Monte Foods, Incorporated Commercial Creamery Company Delaware Food Industry Council Commodities Natural Market DelawareBio ConAgra Foods, Inc. Delhaize America, LLC Connecticut Food Association Diamond V Connecticut United for Research Excellence (CURE) Discount Dollar Consumers Coop Doane, Ltd. Cooperative Council of North Carolina Donald Danforth Plant Science Center Cooperative Credit Company Don's Food Mart Cooperative Farmer's Elevator Dow AgroSciences Cooperative Grain and Supply Dr Pepper Snapple Group Cooperative Milk Producers Association DSM North America Cooperative Network DuPont Corbion Eat Pallucca's LLC Corn Refiners Association ECI Coop Jesup, Iowa Cortland Bulk Milk Producers Cooperative EJK Holdings Costco Elanco Animal Health Cottonseed and Feed Association Elite Spice, Inc. Council for Responsible Nutrition Ellison Bakery Country Boy Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery Country Partners Ellwood City Save A Lot Country Pride Coop Elmer Chocolate Country Pride Services Cooperative Elwyhee Beet Growers Countryside Cooperative Empire State Potato Growers C-P Flexible Packaging Equity Cooperative Livestock Sales Association Crop Production Services Inc. Equity Exchange CropLife America Evans Food Group Ltd. Crystal Creamery Evergreen Market's Inc Evolva Fox Bros. Piggly Wiggly, Inc. Far West Agribusiness Association Freddies Market Faribault Foods, Inc. Fresh by Brookshire’s Farm Credit Bank of Texas Fresno Madera Farm Credit Farm Credit East Fricks Market Farm Credit of New Mexico Friedman's Freshmarkets Farm Credit of Western Kansas Frontier Cooperative Farm Credit of Western Oklahoma Frontier Farm Credit Farm Credit Services of America Full Circle Ag Farmers Coop Association Fun Sweets, LLC Farmers Cooperative Company Furmano's Farmers Cooperative Compress Galerie Farmers Cooperative Creamery Galloway Company Farmers Cooperative Elevator GCM – The Big Store Farmers Cooperative of