Congressman for All Alaska Don Young’s amendment to H.R. 2112 (Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2012), banning the FDA from considering genetically modified salmon as an animal drug, passed the House by a voice vote last night. This amendment blocks an integral step in the path to approval and comes in response to a proposal by AquaBounty Technologies, currently under consideration by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
For a copy of Rep. Young's amendment, click here.
“Frankenfish is uncertain and unnecessary,” said Rep. Young. “Should it receive approval as an animal drug, it clears the path to introduce it into the food supply; my amendment cuts them off before they can get that far. Any approval of genetically modified salmon could seriously threaten wild salmon populations as they grow twice as fast and require much more food. Additionally, there are no guarantees that the fish eggs will not be sold to other nations, where open water net pens are more common or on the other end of the spectrum, cause countries with strict regulations on genetically modified foods to reject U.S. salmon, hurting the U.S. fishing industry during an ongoing economic recession. Frankenfish is bad policy all around. I eat Alaskan wild salmon and I support Alaskan wild salmon and I will not allow these fake fish to affect our healthy stocks.”
A vote on final passage of H.R. 2112 will be this afternoon.
