AquaBounty may have won federal approval on April 26 for a genetically engineered salmon facility in Indiana, but they won’t be able to produce GE salmon there, says Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.
The Alaska Republican’s comments on May 1 came in the wake of Federal Drug Administration approval of an application for an AquaBounty salmon facility in Indiana last week. The company began developing genetically engineered salmon in 1996 and received an FDA approval in 2005 to sell it for human consumption.
Murkowski said the fight against “Frankenfish” is not over and she would continue to push for clear labeling of the product if it is to enter into the U.S. marketplace and for proper oversight.
Genetically engineered salmon currently are evaluated under the FDA’s New Animal Drug Application, a program intended to oversee antibiotics and medicines used on animals and livestock.
“The fact that the FDA does not have a proper approval process in place for these new GE animals for human consumption is frightening and appalling,” she said
“Alaska’s fisheries are world renowned for their high quality, productivity and sustainability, and these genetically modified salmon could potentially devastate our wild populations of salmon and desolate our fisheries,” she said.
Murkowski is a sponsor of the Genetically Engineered Salmon Labeling Act legislation, which mandates clear labeling of genetically engineered salmon.
