- The FDA's data is one-sided. Critical studies that were given "primary deference," according to the FDA, were conducted by AquaBounty Technologies or their contractors. No independent studies have been conducted, nor has the FDA conducted their own research.
- The FDA continues to fail us when it comes to food safety. We need a safe food system more than we need genetically engineered food, particularly in the wake of one of the largest food recalls in history. The FDA should commit its already slim resources to ensuring the safety of our current food system.
- AquaBounty's claims are misleading and contradictory. AquaBounty states that GE salmon could never interact with wild salmon populations - an occurrence that would endanger wild fish populations and a claim that would be impossible to ensure since salmon escapes are typical in open ocean aquaculture. AquaBounty contradicts this claim in their own environmental assessment by acknowledging, "No single containment measure can be assured of 100% effectiveness." The FDA has sited that these claims are "potentially misleading."
- Consumers don't want it. More than 60 percent of consumers polled by Consumer Reports National Research Center said they would not buy meat or milk products from GE animals. Nearly 80 percent of consumers from a recent Washington Post user poll said they would not eat GE salmon due to potential health and environmental risks.
- FDA is treating GE salmon as a drug, not food. FDA plans to regulate GE salmon as a veterinary drug, not food. If GE salmon is being treated like a drug, than it is obviously not exactly the same as wild salmon, as the FDA claims.
- Lack of transparency. Treating GE salmon like a drug is a loophole that enables the FDA to effectively approve it in secret since approval of new drugs requires confidentiality. This lack of transparency regarding a controversial food product should make consumers wary.
- If GE salmon is approved, the gates immediately open for other GE foods and clones. All eyes are on AquaBounty right now, but there are many more companies like them waiting to see if GE salmon gets the go-ahead - companies that are trying to approve GE pigs and cloned animals for the marketplace.
- 15 years of closed research, yet the public only has a few weeks to weigh in. The FDA has spent 15 years working with AquaBounty to create a regulatory process for genetically engineered animals behind closed doors. They expect the public to read and process their data in just a couple of weeks before the approval process moves forward. If they have truly conducted thorough research, they should provide more time for the public sector to weigh in.
- GE salmon threatens the environment. Up to five percent of AquaBounty's GE salmon eggs could potentially be fertile. If GE salmon mate with wild fish or compete with natural populations, the results could be devastating.
- Inconclusive studies. The FDA doesn't truly know if GE salmon is safe for human consumption. They do not have the capacity to determine its safety and the testing that has been conducted has not included potential impacts and risks on human health or the environment.
Comment: For additional information about the many health and environmental issues associated with Genetically Modified Salmon read the following articles:
'Frankensalmon' ruled safe to eat: Fast-growing GM fish approved by scientists
Genetically Modified Frankenfish!
Genetically Altered Salmon Get Closer to the Table
Genetically Modified Salmon Present a Number of Risks to Consumer Health and Environment:
"Unfortunately, the FDA's tests (historically used to determine if a non-GM food was safe) were created before GM products became a reality and are insufficient in determining the long-term, unforeseen consequences of the GM salmon in question. Put simply, these dated tests cannot determine the salmon's full allergenicity and toxicity."
"And toxic they are - a recent study commissioned by the European Union revealed that fish that have been modified to grow faster also have a higher tolerance to the toxins in their environment. Researchers expressed concerns that both these toxins and the growth hormones would end up in consumers."
"In addition to the FDA's inability to test for the full range of consumer health threats introduced by GM foods, the agency's tests do not include a review of the GM animals' environmental impacts."
"This is unacceptable, as European researchers also found that genetically modified fish 'have a considerably greater effect on the natural environment than hatchery-reared non-transgenic species when they escape.'"
Canada recently banned PCB's in plastic (apologies if I didn't get the leeching chemical in plastic right). If it's toxic by Canadian standards, why in Gods name doesn't everyone else look at the info Canada has and toss PCB's world wide!?
European countries & GM foods, they toss them out (or most countries in the EU have). If it's toxic by EU standards, why in Gods name doesn't everyone else look at the info the EU has and toss GM foods world wide!?
To heaven with these pathological monstrosities that are putting this crap into our food system! What is their Goal - to help grow pathology within all of us? I'm not a psycho, but I('ve) suffer(ed) from sociopathic behaviors. What is happening to the world. Look how passive we (US citizens) have become:
Deflect, Dissociate, Deny,
Yet 911 is still a lie.
Here have some more Aspartame (neurotoxin) with your Diet Coke (which helps cause more inflammation and the fat never gets reduced!). How about some gluten, MSG, sugarfide Mcmeat,.. Have some Oil Coated crustaceans from the Gulf, their full of Carcinogens and Mutagens! Give your kids some steroid milk, they're certain to grow into puberty by 10 years old that way! Bone apatite!
After you eat have a fluoride water bath, don't forget to brush with fluoride concentrated toothpaste!
Welcome to the twilight zone, oh wait, it's reality. 8o