City opposes GE salmon
This article was originally published in June 2013
Seattle’s City Council has passed a resolution opposing any action to approve genetically engineered (GE) salmon. Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn concurred with the council’s unanimous vote and is submitting the resolution to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a public comment.
The resolution notes FDA has not conducted any safety testing and generally has neglected to address serious concerns about the safety of consuming an animal engineered to produce foreign growth hormones at all times. It says engineered salmon would severely impact populations of native salmon, as well as the ecology of coastal communities that rely on the commercial fishing industry.
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community also has urged FDA not to approve the engineered salmon, saying the risks of contaminating wild salmon and “irreversibly harming tribal culture and traditions are too great.”
By the comment period deadline in April, FDA received nearly 2 million comments opposing GE salmon.