The Los Angeles city council has asked the city attorney to draft a proposal banning the sale and planting of any genetically modified seeds with the L.A. city limits.
Councilman Mitch O’Farrell, who co-authored the proposal, admits the ban would be largely symbolic due to the small amount of agriculture within the city. But he says it would send “a clear signal that in Los Angeles we want to return to GMO-free food.” Among concerns cited by council members are that genetic modification makes food unsafe to eat and is linked to the decline in the bee population.
The L.A. Times editorial board criticized the council’s proposal, which it says is “chock full of inconsistent logic”. The Times called the move “virtually meaningless, because there are no such crops in the city and no plans to grow them” The paper implored lawmakers to “rise above irrational fears and easy generalizations and to become informed about science.”
The L.A. city council approved the proposal asking for the draft measure on a 13 to 1 vote.