“Frankenfish” warned us this would happen.
One of our great cinematic achievements, the 2004 film tells the tale of genetically modified fish that develop the ability to breathe air, grow to the size of humans, and – spoiler alert – take bloody revenge for all that filleting of their ancestors.
Maybe “Frankenfish” isn’t exactly a documentary (yet), but genetic modification of fish is real. Grocery stores will soon carry scientifically enhanced salmon that grow large enough for sale in half the time of natural fish.
In our latest poll at HeraldNet.com, we asked whether you think those fish should carry labels that explain they’re not all-natural. Eighty-nine percent said yes.
It’s a slam-dunk, right? It’s only logical to want to know where your dinner came from. The more information about our food, the better – except when eating hot dogs at a ballgame, when less information is probably for the best.
So why is the FDA refusing to label the fish any differently? It seems that technically it can’t unless there’s a substantial nutritional difference, and technically the GMO salmon is close enough to regular salmon. Meanwhile, Congress wouldn’t be able to agree on which end of the fish is the tail, so you can forget about a deal on a food label.
So we’re left at the mercy of grocery stores and food suppliers. Retailers can label GMO fish if they want, although Costco, Kroger and other chains have said they won’t carry it at all.
The fish supplier, AquaBounty, could voluntarily label the fish, but CEO Ronald Stotish has rejected that idea. Technically he would rather you go jump in a lake.
If you do, watch out for the fish. You might not want to make them angry.
— Doug Parry, @parryracer
Next up: With gas tax revenue expected to decline in the coming years, we’d like to know how you’d address the issue.
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