"Super Salmon or 'Frankenfish'? FDA to Decide"

The AquaBounty company in Massachusetts has come up with a genetically engineered version of the atlantic salmon, and they are trying to get the FDA to approve it for sale. If they do approve, it would be the first time ever that modified animals are allowed on our plates. Genetic engineering has been allowed on crops for years, but animals is another story. The Drug Administration has said that the 'Frankenfish' is just as safe to eat as the original salmon, but they have not approved the fish yet. The motive behind all of this trouble: the Frankenfish grows twice as fast as the original salmon. The Frankenfish gets it's name from critics. They gave it this nickname because the fish "could cause allergies in humans and the eventual decimation of the wild salmon population." The reviewing of the Frankenfish will continue throughout the week, taking into consideration the science of the fish and criticisms from others.


Personally, I'm not a fan of fish- catching them I'm ok with, but eating them... not so much. So I probably don't have as strict of an opinion as some people do, but I still have an opinion. I really think, from the little knowledge that I have on this topic, that they should allow it. The fish grows twice as fast meaning that they could produce twice the amount of salmon in the same amount of time. If the fish are 100% safe to eat, then why not? Some critics did say that the fish can produce allergies, if this is true, they need to find out how and which type of people are affected, and this needs to be addressed/ the speech given before a person is served the fish- so they have to option to say no. Another issue brought up was that doing this could drastically drop the numbers of wild salmon. According to this, I would say that those producing frankenfish should have their own population of salmon to convert to frankenfish... meaning they build up their own school of salmon before they begin, this way they have no effect on the wild salmon. Also, some people are not ok with this because they don't want to "manipulate the genetic code of other living creatures" but they are ok with the genetic engineering on crops and in cows to produce more milk... I don't see how this is really any different, especially if they have their own population of fish like I suggested above. From what I know, I say let's go for it.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39265727/ns/health-food_safety/