As you may have noticed, tablehopper doesn’t usually get too political and mostly sticks with hard-hard-hitting restaurant news, like where to score katsu buns on a Sunday. But this November, California’s Proposition 37 has been big news within the food community. For those of you who haven’t been following it, Proposition 37, if passed, would require food companies to label genetically modified products. It doesn’t ban or penalize them, just requires a label.
Lots of chefs and food luminaries have gotten behind the proposition, including Alice Waters, Mario Batali, Deborah Madison, Dan Barber, Rick Bayless, and Charles Phan. A recent petition, headed by Waters herself, includes signatures from more than 1,000 chefs. To take a look at the petition, and for more information about the issue, check out the California Right to Know website. Michael Pollan weighed in with an article for The New York Times (paywall alert!), and you can also check out this MSNBC video. (Keep a lookout for Danny DeVito’s bit part there too.) So while we’re not telling you how to vote, do check out some of the information on this issue, because if you like to eat—and care about what you eat—this is an important time to pay attention.
Mama Alice and Carlo Petrini of Slow Food International, show their support for Prop 37. Photo Courtesy CA Right to Know.
