Bill Description: Senate Bill 1018 would require food sold in Idaho to contain an information label if it contains a vaccine or vaccine-related material.
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Does it give government any new, additional, or expanded power to prohibit, restrict, or regulate activities in the free market? Conversely, does it eliminate or reduce government intervention in the market?
Senate Bill 1018 would amend Section 37-115, Idaho Code, by adding a new subsection that prohibits the “manufacture, sale, delivery, holding, or offering for sale of any food that contains a vaccine or vaccine material unless the food labeling contains a conspicuous notification of the presence of the vaccine or vaccine material in the food."
Senate Bill 1018 would impose a new labeling requirement on food producers, and this requirement would likely entail some additional costs. Compliance could also prove challenging if the food being sold came from a jurisdiction with less stringent labeling requirements.
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Does it in any way restrict public access to information related to government activity or otherwise compromise government transparency, accountability, or election integrity? Conversely, does it increase public access to information related to government activity or increase government transparency, accountability, or election integrity?
While it is true that Senate Bill 1018 would impose a new regulation on food producers, it must also be acknowledged that we are already operating in a heavily regulated market. This is particularly true when it comes to matters of health and safety, where market preferences have long been subordinated to the opinions and tastes of government regulators.
Government already defines which food additives are safe and legal, and as history has shown, government often gets it wrong. Currently, most artificial additives, such as colorings, flavorings, and dyes, are disclosed through mandatory ingredient labeling, which gives consumers choice. This is not required, however, for other adulterating substances, such as vaccines.
It should be noted that once again, it is the government that decides what constitutes a safe and legal vaccine. In fact, Senate Bill 1018 defines "vaccine or vaccine material" in part as a substance "that is authorized or approved by the United States food and drug administration."
In a fully free market, both the composition and labeling of food would be driven by consumer preference. But in a regulated market where an imperfect government can arbitrarily give certain substances its seal of approval and allow them to be surreptitiously added to the food supply, there is a strong argument for requiring public disclosure of what federal bureaucrats have decided is safe and healthy.
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