From: Katie Bowen-Kosh [ktboko@earthlink.net]
Sent: Wednesday, February 14, 2001 1:20 AM
To: fdadockets@oc.fda.gov
Subject: re: dockets OON-1396 and OOD-1598

Dear Commissioner Henney,

The proposed Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations fail to require labels or safety tests on genetically engineered (GE) food. The new rules continue to deny Americans the right to know what is in our food, while protecting the economic interests of biotech corporations.

Labeling GE foods would protect the public from potential health effects that could only be traced if GE foods can be identified. By refusing to require both labeling and mandatory safety testing of foods, the FDA puts consumers' health at risk, and ignores the recommendations of the Biotechnology Consultative Forum, which in December urged the U.S. to require mandatory labeling of GE foods.

We urge you to reconsider this proposal and insure that GE foods are subject to pre-market testing and labeling. Americans have a right to make informed decisions about the food we consume.

Sincerely,

Katie Bowen-Kosh and David Kosh