With Congress passing GMO label rules, consumers look to General Mills for what to expect

The U.S. House passed a Senate bill Thursday requiring food companies label products that contain genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, raising questions for interested consumers.

Shoppers can look to General Mills for some idea of what to expect. In anticipation of a new state law in Vermont that would require labels, the Golden Valley-based, along with Mars candies and Campbell's Soup, decided to put GMO labels on its packages nationwide. The General Mills products are already on U.S. store shelves.

For cereal, the text can be found below the nutrition label on the side panel of all General Mills boxes.

But the federal bill, which President Obama has indicated he will likely sign, will supercede Vermont's state law. It's unclear whether this will impact the company's existing GMO labels. Earlier this week, a General Mills spokesperson said the company will "need to review the regulations once finalized, talk with our consumers on their preferences, and develop our long-term plan."

The federal bill is the first of its kind and requires large food distributors flag the presence of GMOs with words, a symbol or a smartphone scan code on its products.

Minnesota's large food and agriculture businesses previously advocated for a voluntary GMO labeling standard, but later supported the Senate's compromise to avoid the possibility of 50 different standards in the 50 U.S. states.