LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- USDA has until Jan. 1, 2028, to rewrite a genetically engineered foods labeling rule after a federal court in California this week clarified the timeline to a new rulemaking.

USDA's biotech labeling rule was developed in response to a 2016 federal law that for the first time required GE foods to be labeled.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in 2025 reversed the U.S. District Court for the District of Northern California. It held that USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service acted unlawfully by excluding highly refined foods from the GE labeling requirements simply because GE material was deemed "not detectable."

USDA had been pressing the district court to delay the deadline for vacating the previous rule to 2029.

"But the Ninth Circuit noted that 'allowing an inadequate disclosure option to continue throughout the entirety of the administrative process for amending the regulations would itself perpetuate a disruption in consumer access to bioengineering disclosures,'" the district court said in the order this week.

While the Ninth Circuit said several provisions of the rule were unlawful, it returned the case to the district court to decide on a remedy.

The Ninth Circuit in October 2025 ruled that several parts of the rule were unlawful.

The Ninth Circuit also ruled there is a difference between whether a food "contains" GE material versus whether it is "detectable." The appeals court said the AMS has discretionary authority to set threshold amounts for disclosure and remanded the rule to USDA.

The appeals court also previously ruled that the district court in California abused its discretion when it agreed that USDA's use of "QR code" or smartphone labeling in the rule was unlawful, but did not vacate that part of the rule.

USDA will now be required to issue new rules that clarify that QR code packaging alone is not enough.

The lawsuit was originally filed in 2020 and then appealed by plaintiffs including Natural Grocers, Citizens for GMO Labeling, Label GMOs, Rural Vermont, Good Earth Natural Foods, Puget Consumers Coop, Center for Food Safety and National Organic Coalition.

In addition, agriculture groups were allowed to intervene in the case including the American Farm Bureau Federation, U.S. Beet Sugar Association and the American Sugarbeet Growers Association.

In its original rule, USDA exempted "highly refined" or ultra-processed GMO foods -- such as corn and soy oils -- from disclosure. GMO ultra-processed foods such as sodas and cooking oils make up about 70% of all GMO food ingredients.

Congress passed the law after Vermont, Connecticut and Maine passed labeling laws, and other states were planning to do the same. The federal law required food manufacturers to begin labeling in January 2022.

Read more on DTN:

"Ninth Circuit Overturns GE Labels Rule," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

"Groups Fight USDA on GE Foods Labels," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

"GMO Labeling: The Saga Continues," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

"USDA Bioengineered Label Law Challenged," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com

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