Please Help Stop the Frankenfish Attack

This video presents “Frankenfish: Genetically engineered salmon”:

• “Genetically engineered seeds are not breaking news; however a biotech company called AquaBounty has been working on genetically engineered salmon

• The fish will be a combination of Atlantic salmon and part Ocean Pout

• Jeffrey M. Smith says that it is ridiculous to evaluate the safety of this food with no long term feeding studies and sample sizes as large as six; and refuses to consume this genetically engineered salmon, if approved“

In the following letter, the Avaaz team is asking for our help to:

• Urge Margaret A. Hamburg, Commissioner US Food and Drug Administration, to reject the approval of AquaBounty’s transgenic salmon for human consumption because:

  • AquaBounty’s transgenic salmon is the world’s first genetically modified meat: a mutant salmon that could wipe out wild salmon populations and threaten human health

  • Genetically modified  fish pose a real threat to natural marine species

    • The new fake salmon grows twice as fast as real salmon

    • If a few of them or their eggs reached the wild, these super-salmon could decimate entire wild salmon populations

    • FDA’s approval of transgenic salmon could open the floodgates for genetically modified animals worldwide

  • The long-term effects of consuming transgenic meat have not been sufficiently researched

    • This new fake salmon is about to be declared safe for us to eat, based on studies paid for by the company that created the GMO (genetically modified organism) creature

    • Once the GMO salmon hits supermarkets, we won’t be able to tell apart Frankenfish and real salmon, so there won’t be a way to avoid it!

• Urgently build an avalanche of global support to help a growing coalition of consumers, environmentalists and fishermen win the support of the government to reject this fishy deal because:

  • the US is legally required to consider public opinion before deciding

  • a public consultation is happening right now and we have a real chance to keep mutant fish off the menu

• Please click on the “Sign The Petition” banner in the Avaaz letter below to say NO to Frankenfish and share widely

  • At the present time of this blog posting,  621,900 people have signed the petition

  • when we reach 1 million, the Avaaz team will officially submit our call  to the public consultation

Dear friends,

The US is about to treat the world to the first genetically modified meat: a mutant salmon that could wipe out wild salmon populations and threaten human health. Unless we stop it, this Frankenfish could open the floodgates for biotech meat around the world. Click below to build 1 million voices to stop it:

The US is about to treat the world to the first genetically modified meat: a mutant salmon that could wipe out wild salmon populations and threaten human health — but we can stop it now before our plates are filled with suspicious Frankenfish.

The new fake salmon grows twice as fast as the real one, and not even scientists know its long-term health effects. Yet it’s about to be declared safe for us to eat, based on studies paid for by the company that created the GMO creature! Luckily, the US is legally required to consider public opinion before deciding. A growing coalition of consumers, environmentalists, and fishermen is calling on the government to trash this fishy deal. Let’s urgently build an avalanche of global support to help them win.

The consultation is happening right now and we have a real chance to keep mutant fish off the menu. Sign to stop Frankenfish and share widely — when we reach 1 million, our call will be officially submitted to the public consultation:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_frankenfish_r/?bkyeWbb&v=21102

The company that developed the Frankenfish altered the DNA of the salmon to create a fish that would grow at lightning speed, year-round. Not only do we not understand its long term health effects, if a few of them or their eggs reached the wild, these super-salmon could decimate entire wild salmon populations. Worse, once they hit supermarkets, we won’t be able to tell apart Frankenfish and real salmon, so there won’t be a way to avoid it!

The biotech industry has spent hundreds of millions of dollars lobbying governments to approve its GM crops. Frankenfish is their next million dollar baby — it could open the floodgates for other transgenic meats. But the US government will consider public opinion before it makes its final decision — if we can stun them with a giant global opposition when they least expect it, we can stop this reckless deal.

Frankenfish is on the verge of being approved — let’s make sure biotech companies don’t decide what we eat. Help build one million voices to stop the mutant fish:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_frankenfish_r/?bkyeWbb&v=21102

Avaaz members have come together to protect the natural world and our food system from dangerous meddling. In 2010, over 1 million of us spoke out against genetically modified food in Europe. Let’s come together again to stop Frankenfish.

With hope,

Jamie, Nick, Emma, Dalia, Emily, Paul, Ricken, Wen-Hua and the whole Avaaz team

MORE INFORMATION

Engineered Fish Moves a Step Closer to Approval (NY Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/22/business/gene-altered-fish-moves-closer-to-federal-approval.html

GM salmon: FDA’s assessment of environmental risks (LA Times)
http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-aquabounty-salmon-fda-assesses-risks-20121224,0,2554480.story

Genetically Modified Animals (Women’s Health Magazine)
http://www.womenshealthmag.com/nutrition/genetically-modified-animals

Protect our waters from GE Salmon (Center for Food Safety)
http://ge-fish.org/

Below the Surface: The Dangers of Genetically Engineered Salmon (Food & Water Watch)
http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/factsheet/below-the-surface/

Genetically Engineered Salmon (Ocean Conservancy)
http://www.oceanconservancy.org/our-work/aquaculture/aquaculture-genetically.html

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