$500,000 USDA Grant Could Help Genetically Modified Salmon Company Stay Afloat
Genetically Engineered Salmon Transgenic Atlantic salmon called AquAdvantage grow at twice the rate of their natural counterparts. These fish are the same age. AquaBounty Opponents of genetically modified food are crying foul over a recent government grant to the maker of GM salmon. The funds, which are earmarked for research, came on the heels of a financial report in which the firm reported eliminating board members to cut costs and acknowledged it needs to raise additional capital. If AquaBounty Technologies can weather its financial situation, GM salmon could wind up on dinner plates in the very near future. AquaBounty will use the $494,162 U.S. Department of Agriculture biotechnology risk assessment grant to research methods to sterilize the fish so they can't produce genetically modified offspring. The Food and Drug Administration has still not decided whether to permit the sale of the salmon for human consumption, but a ruling could come at any...