US urged to delay approving genetically altered salmon

A group of independent experts urged US authorities Monday to do more studies before allowing a genetically modified salmon to become the first transgenic animal to hit American dinner tables.

"We are sending a message for further studies," said David Senior, a professor of veterinary medicine at Louisiana State University and chair of a committee of independent experts consulted by the Food and Drug Administration.

The 14-member committee did not vote but most agreed that the studies undertaken so far were insufficient to determine with any certainty whether the genetically altered salmon proposed by AquaBounty Technologies pose a risk to humans or the environment.

They reached the conclusion at the end of a long day of deliberations at a hotel in this Washington suburb of Rockville.

The agency turned to the committee of independent experts after concluding in early September, based on company data, that the modified fish is safe for human consumption and the environment.

The fish - a new Atlantic salmon with a growth hormone gene from the Chinook salmon that allows it to grow faster - "is as safe as food from conventional Atlantic salmon," the FDA said in a September 3 statement on the agency's website.

"There is a reasonable certainty of no harm from consumption of food from this animal," which is the creation of Massachusetts-based AquaBounty Technologies.

The FDA is not bound to follow the recommendations of its experts group, but generally does so.

The Massachusetts-based AquaBounty argues that its fish, injected with a gene from the Pacific Chinook salmon, can reach adult size in 16 to 18 months instead of 30 months for normal Atlantic salmon.

The company said that in all other respects, its AquAdvantage salmon "are identical to other Atlantic salmon."

The new strain could help meet rising demand for fish and reduce pressure on wild fish stocks, the firm contends. It says it can avoid the pollution, disease and other problems associated with saltwater fish farms by raising the salmon at inland facilities.

AquaBounty has tried for several years to get the green light from the FDA to breed and market its GMO salmon and appears to be close to its goal. The company has said it would take two to three years from FDA approval before its salmon would hit store shelves.

But a coalition of 31 groups is urging the FDA to reject the application, with critics warning that the new salmon could exacerbate the problem of farmed fish escaping from tanks and breeding with wild counterparts, with unpredictable results.

It could also open the door to a variety of other kinds of genetically engineered animals ranging from tilapia to pigs to cows.

AquaBounty has insisted it would only rear GMO salmon in inland hatcheries, and that only sterile female salmon will be sold to farmers.

The coalition against the plan criticized the FDA's initial support, saying the agency based its decision on scientific data provided by AquaBounty and involving just six fish specimens.
FDA gave just 14 days of public review of the data, it added.

"Data from a mere six salmon, which is all FDA presents, is not sufficient nor rigorous enough to conclude that no problem exists," said Michael Hansen, senior scientist at Consumers Union, in a statement.

Other groups warn against the danger to human health of GMO salmon.

Hansen will appear at Monday's hearing to stress that a more rigorous study and safety assessment be conducted.

"Unfortunately, the evidence of FDA's evaluation of the AquAdvantage salmon suggests that FDA has set the bar very low," he said in a statement.

The "woefully incomplete" data "raise a potential serious human health issue, that of increased allergenicity," he said.

"If this product does increase the allergenic risk, it should not be approved."

If GMO salmon is given the green light, consumer groups are demanding that the FDA require it to carry a GMO label, even though supporters of the new salmon argue that such a label might lead consumers to shun the fish.
 

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