USDA Bioengineered (BE) Food Disclosure Standard
USDA AMS National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard · NBFDS · 7 CFR Part 66 · BE List · bioengineered food · GMO labeling
Term — USDA Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard: nBFDS (7 CFR Part 66) mandatory since January 2022 — BE List of regulated foods (canola, corn, soy, sugar beet, alfalfa, papaya, summer squash, eggplant, potatoes, pink pineapple, salmon), detectability test with refining records and validated PCR, four disclosure formats (text, USDA BE symbol, digital link with phone backup, text-message option), exemptions for restaurants, very small manufacturers (<$2.5M), NOP-certified organic and BE-feed-only animal products.
USDA AMS National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard mandatory since January 2022. BE definition — foods containing detectable modified genetic material that could not otherwise have been obtained through conventional breeding or found in nature. BE List published by USDA: alfalfa, Arctic apples, canola, corn, cotton, BARI Bt Begun eggplant, ringspot virus-resistant papaya, pink Bioengineered pineapple, potato, AquAdvantage salmon, soybean, summer squash, sugar beet. Detectability — refined ingredients (HFCS, refined sugar from BE beet, refined oils) typically not disclosable with refining records plus validated PCR test showing no detectable modified genetic material; two-year record retention. Four disclosure formats with prescriptive size/colour/placement requirements (7 CFR 66.105-66.111): text ('Bioengineered food' / 'Contains a bioengineered food ingredient'), USDA BE symbol (green-circle sun-and-plant motif), digital link/QR with mandatory 'Scan here for more food information' plus phone-number backup, text-message option. Exemptions: restaurants/foodservice, very small manufacturers (<$2.5M annual receipts), foods derived solely from BE-feed-fed animals (meat, poultry, eggs, dairy excluded from disclosure), NOP-certified organic products, USDA FSIS predominant-ingredient foods. NBFDS preempted state-level GMO labelling laws including Vermont Act 120. Distinct from Non-GMO Project Verified private certification (butterfly mark, 0.9% LOD threshold, broader scope including BE-feed-derived animal products).
- 7 CFR Part 66
- National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Law 2016
- 7 USC §1639
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