美国食品药品管理局周四批准了转基因三文鱼被人类食用。批准转基因动物食用在美国尚属首次。
奥巴马政府五年多以来一直未能批准快速增长的转基因三文鱼上市，因为消费者一直担心食用转基因食品是否安全。但本周四，食品药品监督管理局已经明确了，转基因三文鱼可以安全食用。
食品药品管理局表示，AquAdvantage三文鱼（美国AquaBounty技术公司的研究人员将大西洋三文鱼、太平洋奇努克三文鱼以及大洋鳕鱼三种鱼进行基因杂交改造，培育出来的一种全新三文鱼品种）与其他农场养殖的大西洋三文鱼的营养含量没什么生物区别。
马萨诸塞州公司AquaBounty培育了AquAdvantage这一三文鱼品种。该公司CEO罗恩·斯拖提希在一次声明中表示，该品种三文鱼是一个革命者，它将给消费者带来健康营养的食物，并且承担起环境责任，不损害海洋及海洋生物。
这种鱼的生长速度是普通三文鱼的两倍，能更快速地上市。它体内含有从太平洋奇努克三文鱼身上提取的激素，可以使之一整年不断产生生长激素。工程师用另一种类似鳗鱼的大洋鳕鱼基因保持生长激素的活跃，促进AquAdvantage三文鱼生长。普通三文鱼一年内只有部分时间产生生长激素。
食品药品管理局表示该鱼种损害环境的可能性很低。只养殖了雌鱼和绝育鱼，仅有一小部分仍能繁殖。该公司称流入自然的可能性很低。
没有证据证明这种鱼不安全，但部分人认为这是个道德问题。
部分经销商承诺不销售这个品种，且批准后这种鱼是否为大众所接受还不得而知。基因工程已经在农作物上大规模应用，但政府直到现在才考虑允许转基因动物的消费。虽然利益和利润极大，许多人对于操纵改变其他生物遗传密码的行为感到不安。
批评者将这种转基因三文鱼称为“科学怪鱼”（美国一部恐怖电影名）他们担心造成人类过敏，且一旦流入自然后繁殖，造成天然三文鱼的灭绝。还有人认为繁殖转基因动物是不道德的。（中国进出口网）
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved genetically modified salmon, the first such altered animal allowed for human consumption in the United States.
The Obama administration had stalled in approving the fast-growing salmon for more than five years amid consumer concerns about eating genetically modified foods. But the agency said Thursday the fish is safe to eat.
In announcing the approval, the FDA said that there are "no biologically relevant differences in the nutritional profile of AquAdvantage Salmon compared to that of other farm-raised Atlantic salmon."
AquAdvantage Salmon was created by the Massachusetts-based company AquaBounty. Ron Stotish, the company's CEO, said in a statement that the fish is a "game changer that brings healthy and nutritious food to consumers in an environmentally responsible manner without damaging the ocean and other marine habitats."
The fish grows twice as fast as normal salmon, so it reaches market size more quickly. It has an added growth hormone from the Pacific Chinook salmon that allows the fish to produce growth hormone all year long. The engineers were able to keep the hormone active by using another gene from an eel-like fish called an ocean pout that acts like an "on" switch for the hormone. Typical Atlantic salmon produce the growth hormone for only part of the year.
The FDA has also said the fish is unlikely to harm the environment. The fish would be bred female and sterile, though a very small percentage might still be able to breed. The company has argued the potential for escape is low.
There is no evidence that the foods would be unsafe, but for some people, it's an ethical issue.
Some retailers have pledged not to sell the salmon, and it's still unclear whether the public will have an appetite for the fish if it is approved. Genetic engineering is already widely used for crops, but the government until now has not considered allowing the consumption of modified animals. Although the potential benefits and profits are huge, many people have qualms about manipulating the genetic code of other living creatures.
Critics call the modified salmon a "frankenfish." They worry that it could cause human allergies and the eventual decimation of the natural salmon population if it escapes and breeds in the wild. Others believe breeding engineered animals is an ethical issue.
