The First Genetically Modified Animal to be Approved for American Consumption

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the sale of a genetically modified salmon known as AquAdvantage salmon to U.S. consumers. The fish was developed by AquaBounty Technologies, which first submitted data to the FDA twenty years ago. In 2010, the FDA determined that the fish was safe to eat and would not have a significant impact on the environment in the United States.

Many consumer and environmental groups have opposed the approval of the new salmon. The Center for Food Safety, a consumer advocacy organization, said it and other groups would file a lawsuit challenging the approval. More than 60 supermarket chains have already committed to not sell modified salmon, including Kroger, Safeway, Costco, Safeway, Trader Joe's, and Whole Foods. Walmart and Publix have not yet commented on the fish. Red Lobster said it would not serve modified salmon.

The AquAdvantage salmon is a genetically modified version of Atlantic salmon engineered for rapid growth. It has an rDNA construct composed of the growth hormone from Chinook salmon controlled by a promoter from the eel-like fish known as an ocean pout. The promoter is a sequence of DNA that turns on the expression of the growth hormone gene, leading to increased growth rate in the AquAdvantage salmon.

According to the FDA's lengthy review of the fish, the nutritional profile of AquAdvantage salmon is comparable to that of unmodified farm-raised Atlantic salmon. Fish composition was equivalent in both overall measures (such as total protein and total fat) and detailed measures (including specific amino acids, vitamins, and fatty acids including omega-3 and omega-6).

In addition, the FDA examined data on hormones in three groups of fish: unmodified Atlantic salmon from both an AquaBounty farm and a third party commercial farm, and the AquAdvantage salmon. No biologically relevant differences were found in a comparison of several key hormones (including estradiol, testosterone, 11-ketotestosterone, T3, T4 and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1)).

The risks of adverse environmental impacts were found to be insignificant due to multiple physical containment measures in place. In addition, the AquAdvantage fish must be produced as all-female, triploid fish, meaning they would be effectively sterile.

It will likely be at least two years before any AquAdvantage salmon reaches consumers because it takes about two years for the salmon to reach market size. Even then, the amount reaching the market will start off small because the approved production facility in Panama has the capacity to produce only 100 tons of fish per year compared to the 200,000 tons of Atlantic salmon that the U.S. imports each year.

Would you feel safe consuming AquAdvantage salmon?