Two CEOs Help Heat Up Debate Over Genetically Modified Salmon
16 September 2010 - 7:58PM
Dow Jones News
With the help of two chief executives, the debate over whether
genetically engineered salmon should enter the U.S. food supply
heated up Thursday ahead of a series of Food and Drug
Administration meetings that kick off this weekend.
The head of the Massachusetts firm that plans to sell the
modified fish spoke to reporters Thursday to answer questions ahead
of the meetings, which will examine safety and labeling issues.
Meanwhile, the head of Vermont-based ice cream maker Ben &
Jerry's was set to descend on Washington Thursday to fight plans
for the altered fish.
AquaBounty Technologies Chief Executive Ronald Stotish on
Thursday told reporters he's hopeful the FDA will approve the
company's salmon for sale.
"It is our hope that not long after these public meetings, the
FDA will grant an approval," he said, while describing the FDA's
review process as an unprecedented exercise in transparency.
Still, he noted that nothing is guaranteed, saying: "One thing
we've learned is you can't predict regulatory action."
Critics of the modified salmon argue that the regulatory process
is not thorough, and they are asking the government to halt action.
They'll have their say later Thursday through a rally outside the
White House.
Opponents, who have dubbed the genetically engineered salmon
"Frankenfish," include environmental and food safety groups--and
Ben & Jerry's, which will be offering rally attendees ice cream
in a flavor called "Something Fishy."
Ben & Jerry's, a unit of Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant
Unilever, also is using its website to aid in the fight. The home
page features salmon swimming innocently in the ocean. Mouse over
one, and it becomes genetically engineered, taking on the look of a
sharp-toothed piranha. A diver's sign says, "Something Seems
Fishy."
"I don't think this is yet a political issue. We're trying to
make it a political issue," Ben & Jerry's Chief Executive
Jostein Solheim told Dow Jones. He said he's worried about the
potential for genetically modified cows, which would affect milk
and ice cream products.
Despite opposition, AquaBounty is making progress. FDA staffers
recently found that its salmon is safe to eat and shouldn't harm
the environment--key findings that give the company's application a
boost.
AquaBounty has spent more than a decade developing its
AquAdvantage Atlantic salmon, which include a gene that enables
them to grow to market size in half the time of conventional
salmon. If regulators sign off on the fast-growing fish, it would
be the first genetically modified animal product to be approved for
human consumption in the U.S.
The company first filed for approval in 1995, but had to wait to
proceed until a regulatory process was outlined. There had been
discussions about whether the technology needed to be regulated and
how, Stotish said, noting that the government recently released
guidelines that helped AquaBounty proceed with its application.
If the FDA were to approve the AquAdvantage salmon eggs, it's
likely the fully grown, modified salmon could be in stores within
about two years, Stotish told reporters.
The biotechnology industry is paying close attention to the
outcome.
This "is a test of the process and a testament to how the
process will work," said David Edwards, a director at the
Biotechnology Industry Organization.
Similarly, Stotish said if the AquAdvantage salmon is approved,
it would be "a milestone event," demonstrating the U.S. is
receptive to new technologies to maintain its food supply.
That's exactly what critics are afraid of.
"First comes the fish. Next comes the cow. Next comes the pig,"
said Ben & Jerry's Solheim. "We don't think America or really
any country anywhere is ready to eat from genetically engineered
animals."
Stotish said he understands the public's wariness over a new
technology, but the data prove that the AquAdvantage salmon is just
as safe as conventional Atlantic salmon.
He's been disappointed by critics' attacks.
"Many of the charges they're leveling are the old charges of
environmental disaster and failure to demonstrate food safety,"
Stotish said. "Our hope is reason prevails and science-based
regulation continues as a principle" in the United States.
-By Maya Jackson Randall, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-257-6313;
maya.jackson-randall@dowjones.com
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