Salmon, which is a key fixture in the Mediterranean diet, has been approved in a genetically modified form by the FDA for human consumption, according to a press release.
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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday has approved a genetically modified salmon for sale in the U.S. It’s the first genetically modified animal to be approved for human consumption.
“The science today seems to suggest that this genetically engineered salmon is no different than conventional salmon”, said the Center’s Director of Biotechnology Gregory Jaffe. It would not be required to label the salmon as genetically engineered, said the FDA.
FDA officials reported that the agency carried out a comprehensive analysis of the scientific evidence and determined that AquAdvantage Salmon meets the statutory requirements for safety and effectiveness under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
AquAdvantage Salmon is engineered by the Massachusetts-based company AquaBounty, which said the fish could be on grocery store shelves in about two years.
The fish will be farmed in Panama and Canada in tanks on land, not in the water, the agency explains, and AquaBounty will raise only sterile female fish that can’t reproduce.
“There are no biologically relevant differences in the nutritional profile of AquAdvantage Salmon compared to that of other farm-raised Atlantic salmon”.
The FDA says it will provide oversight of both the production and facilities for the genetically modified salmon. “AquAdvantage Salmon will offer the opportunity for an economically viable domestic aquaculture industry while providing consumers a fresh and delicious product”, he added.
Dubbed AquAdvantage, the modified salmon have a gene from a close cousin, the Chinook salmon as well as genetic material taken from an ocean-going eel-like species known as pout fish. In addition, FDA assessed the environmental impacts of approving this application and found that the approval would not have a significant impact on the environment of the United States.
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“FDA supports voluntary labeling and is providing this guidance to assist manufacturers that wish to voluntarily label their foods as being made with Atlantic salmon or ingredients derived from Atlantic salmon that has or has not been genetically engineered”, the FDA noted on its website. But the FDA also set guidelines for retailers who do want to label the fish.
