Washington judge fines food group $18M in 2013 GMO fight
SEATTLE — The Grocery Manufacturers Association must pay $18 million in civil fines for concealing the true sources of contributions received from food companies to oppose a 2013 food labeling initiative, a Washington state judge ruled Wednesday.
Thurston County Superior Court Judge Anne Hirsch found that the Washington D.C.-based food industry group “intentionally violated” state campaign finance disclosure laws in its efforts to oppose Initiative 522.
Because the judge found that group intentionally violated the law, her civil penalty of $6 million will be tripled to $18 million. The Attorney General’s Office said it’s believed to be the largest campaign finance penalty in U.S. history.
The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which collected money from the nation’s top food and beverage companies, along with five corporations, raised $22 million to defeat the ballot measure, which would have required labeling of genetically modified foods in the state. Voters narrowly rejected the proposal in the state’s costliest initiative fight.