Following the recent failure of a Senate bill that would have made it voluntary for companies to label genetically modified ingredients, another packaged food biggie is agreeing to hop on the GMO-labeling bandwagon. This time, it’s snack superpower Mars Inc.

In a statement quietly released on Friday, Mars — home to M&M’s, Snickers, Wrigley gum, Twix, Uncle Ben’s rice, and numerous other brands — Mars expressed certainty with regard to the safety of its ingredients, but acknowledged that most customers at least want to know more about the food they eat.

The company says it is “committed to being transparent with our consumers so they can understand what’s in the products they love.”

Regardless of public sentiment, there is the looming July 2016 deadline to comply with a new Vermont law requiring GMO labeling on most packaged foods. With the federal legislation — which would have overturned any state labeling laws — currently dead, Mars and others have little choice but to follow the rules or face financial penalties.

“To comply with that law, Mars is introducing clear, on-pack labeling on our products that contain GM ingredients nationwide,” reads the statement.

The Mars news comes on the heels of a similar statement from General Mills. Earlier this year, Campbell Soup Co. — which makes a lot more than just soup — said it would begin complying with the Vermont law and labeling all its GMO-containing food nationwide.

While many large food producers have called for a nationwide standard for labeling, the actions of these three huge companies demonstrates how the Vermont law may make it unnecessary to enact either a federal law or a patchwork of state regulations.

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