Giant GM salmon on the way 

BBC 11apr00

A US firm - AF Protein - is developing the GM fish on Prince Edward Island, Canada.

The fish would become the first genetically modified animal cleared for consumption, and the technology involved could cut the cost of raising salmon and trout by half.

The Massachusetts-based company has inserted two sets of fish genes into Atlantic salmon. The first set are growth hormone genes and the second, from a different fish, activate them.

As a result, at the age of 18 months, the salmon are five times the size of their unmodified siblings.

Traditional fish farmers fear being undercut by GM salmon. There are also fears from environmentalists.

AF Protein says it has made sure all of its experimental fish are infertile.

'Trojan horse' fear

But campaigners say it is impossible to guarantee sterility and they are worried about the dangers to the wider fish community.

Christopher Poupard, of the Salmon and Trout Association, said: "Salmon are unique and highly complex.

"They migrate thousands of miles and still manage to return to their home river. This has evolved since the last Ice Age.

"We are concerned that escaped genetically-modified fish might breed with wild fish and interrupt that process."

In December researchers warned that the release of just one GM fish could wipe out local populations of the species. It is the so-called "Trojan gene" scenario.

Scottish tests

Tests on GM salmon were carried out in 1996 at a salmon farm on Loch Fyne, on Scotland's west coast.

Last year, Scottish Secretary John Reid pointed out the experiments had been carried out under the previous Conservative government and he said all 50 fish involved had been destroyed afterwards.

But many Scottish salmon producers are pressuring the government to allow GM fish to be sold.

They fear being outdone by other countries, such as Norway, which could adopt the technology.

Environmentalists alarmed over giant GM fish 

11apr00 Reuters

Environmentalists warned on Tuesday that genetically modified fish which can grow 10 times faster than normal could taint the gene pool and upset the delicate balance of nature.

The latest alarm bells about what critics call ''Frankenstein Foods'' were sounded after a U.S firm -- AF Protein -- engineered GM fish which could cut the cost of raising salmon and trout by half.

Both British and U.S. environmentalists said more tests were needed before the fish are served up on dinner plates.

GM proponents say the technology could help feed the developing world, cut costs and reduce the need for pesticides. Detractors say the health risks of the fledgling technology are unclear and the environmental hazards potentially alarming.

Growth Hormone Genes

British supermarkets are wary of stocking GM food due to deep-seated consumer fears about their safety and most leading chains have now pulled such produce from their shelves.

AF Protein is reported to have inserted growth hormone genes from one fish and genes from another fish, which can activate them, into Atlantic salmon.

It says the technology is precise enough to be sure that only genetically modified fish can produce the growth hormone. It also made sure that all its ``guinea pig'' fish are infertile.

But Andrew Kimbrell, from the Washington-based Center For Food Safety, said: ``It is not possible to ensure 100 percent of the fish are sterile.''

He told BBC Radio: ``Once you have an organism out there, you can't recall it. It reproduces, it disseminates, it mutates.

``We have low probability, admittedly, but very high consequences if a few of those fish do escape and they do mate with native wild populations, no one, nothing, can stop that genetic pollution from destroying that species.''

British environmentalists were equally concerned, echoing the anger they vented last year when details were revealed about similar experiments being done in Scotland.

Christopher Poupard, director of the Salmon and Trout Association which lobbies on behalf of game anglers, said: ''Salmon are unique and highly complex. They migrate thousands of miles and still manage to return to their home river. This has evolved since the last ice age.''

He said environmentalists share the same concern: ``Escaped GM fish might breed with wild fish and interrupt that process.''

AF Protein are said to be confident that U.S. authorities would clear the fish for human consumption within a year.

AF Protein President Elliot Entis said toxicological tests were unnecessary. ``There is no level at which you could examine our fish and find any difference between our fish and the non-GM fish,'' he told BBC Radio.

``Franken-Fish''

Environmental groups reacted angrily last year to news that Britain had allowed experiments in Scotland to create GM salmon.

Details of the so-called ``Franken-fish'' experiments emerged when Scottish Secretary John Reid told parliament that thousands of fish were given an extra gene to make them grow faster.

The experiment took place three years ago in a confined, land-based area to prevent the fish from escaping into the wild.

``Approximately 50 of the fish grew at four times the normal rate with no sign of abnormalities. The project was terminated after approximately a year and all the fish were destroyed,'' Reid said. He denied that the tests were kept secret