Fishing for Facts: Get the Know of Genetically Modified FrankenSalmon

As I prepare the wild salmon I purchased for tonight’s dinner, I can’t help but feel a little queasy thinking about all of the articles and reports, contradicting information, and little research I read last week about this new Frankensalmon getting ready to hit a grocery store near you in a few years time. And I have to flat out admit that although I am disturbed by the fact that they can do this to a living species, I’m not quite surprised knowing what the food system has been able to manipulate into production over the years. I am more disturbed that something like this is coming onto the market without sound evidence on any benefits it will bring to our environment and the human race, and most importantly your health.

Thankfully, I have been immersed in the “GMO” field for the last few years, thanks to a good family friend and brilliant Professor, Dr. John Balatinecz, who keeps me on my game when it comes to information gathering and research that has been and continues to be completed in this field. He was the first person I reached out to when the news articles circulated my inbox and Facebook feed last week, and I thank him again for his support in the literature search and fact supporting in bringing this article to you.

So let’s pull the “facts” and the “science” out from all of the stories that were released last week:

• AquaBounty is the company producing the salmon under the label AquAdvantage (yup, that’s right, you will not see “GMO Salmon” on the label anywhere), but rather “Atlantic Salmon”. The head scientist on this (who, I’m sorry to break this news to you, is Canadian) has been deliberating the selling of this fish since 1995!
• The fish will grow faster and bigger within a shorter time frame to allow for more availability to the consumer. How? Well, through this process of inserting a growth hormone gene from Chinook salmon with another gene (known as a promoter gene) from another type of fish called an ocean pout. This then produces the bigger fish within a short time period. I’m sorry, but this is not wrong? Unfortunately not.
• The nutrition profile of the AquAdvantage salmon is comparable to that of a non-genetically engineered farm-raised Atlantic salmon
• All facilities where the fish will be grown will be monitored (according to the FDA), and kept under tight parameters.  The fish eggs will be grown in P.E.I. and then shipped to Panama to grow and be processed.
• Though we are “informed” that the fish will be kept in their own facility and not make their way into the wild for possible cross breeding, a number of studies has found that although the intent is to grow farmed fish in a secure environment, each year millions escape into the wild, which in this case, has the potential to damage our native populations of wild fish to the point of extinction (for example, at least 400 000 fish in British Columbia escaped from 1991-2001).
• The FDA seemed to ignore data from the Canadian Government research scientists who found significant problems with the fish including greater susceptibility to disease and a widely inconsistent growth rate, in addition to the possibility that these salmon may produce a hormone that may increase cancer risk.

At the end of the day, the fish met the necessary FDA requirements (United States), and therefore the fish was approved for sale, however, many grocers will not be jumping this band-wagon which is comforting to a point. But maybe it’s time to look at those FDA regulations then if people are finding loop holes (insert other heresays in nutrition news and lacking evidence as of late), or is it safe to say that after a number of years, and politics and the public advocating to not sell the fish, there’s money to be gained in this business deal which sadly may not have your best health in mind.

So, as consumers, what can you do? Well, you can write to the Minister of Health Canada, sign the petition that has been set up so that Health Canada does not approve the selling of the fish, and well, keep your eyes and ears peeled on news of the future of this Frankenfish.

We all know of the nutrition benefits salmon brings to our health, and the last thing I want to have to tell my clients is to stay away from salmon because you just don’t know what you’re eating anymore.