When it comes to food consumption, just what part of the term "Genetically Modified" make the food sound good?  Okay, some GMP's (Genetically Modified Produce) have developed a number of interesting and delicious combinations like Pluots, Nectaplums, or Grapples; but Genetically Modified Salmon?!  Yikes!  I'm envisioning a green salmon with a flat head and bolts coming out of its gills...

GMS - that's just wrong in every sense of the word.  Look, instead of trying to develop longer lasting salmon or alter any other natural food item, let's just ease up on the heavy fishing, stop polluting the waters, the air, and the soil, and learn to use our natural resources properly...

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To Label or Not Label Lab-Spawned Salmon

By JENNIFER CORBETT DOOREN

Consumer groups urged the Food and Drug Administration to require labeling of genetically modified salmon Tuesday, while industry representatives called on the FDA to stick to current rules the agency says prevent such labeling.


(Associated Press) Fresh wild King salmon rest on a bed of ice Monday at the Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle.


The FDA is considering whether to approve a type of salmon from AquaBounty Technologies Inc. that has been given a gene from another fish species designed to make it grow twice as fast as conventional Atlantic salmon.

If approved, the company's AquAdvantage salmon would be the first genetically modified animal meant to be eaten that received FDA clearance. The agency has already approved several types of genetically altered fruits and vegetables.

The FDA said it couldn't require a genetically modified product to carry a different label under current food-labeling rules, unless there was something materially different about the product.

For example, if an engineered salmon had a different level of fatty acids from that found in a conventional salmon, the FDA could require a label specifying the fatty-acid content. But a preliminary review of AquaBounty's salmon hasn't found any major differences between it and conventional Atlantic salmon.

Still, the agency held a public hearing Tuesday on the label, a day after a federal advisory panel discussed whether the FDA should approve the product. The panel didn't make a clear recommendation on what the FDA should do. Several panelists said the altered fish appeared safe to eat, while others said more research was needed to prove it.

The FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine will make a decision on whether to approve the modified salmon, while the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition will make a decision on the label. Both decisions are likely months away.

Michael Hansen, a senior scientist at Consumers Union, which publishes Consumer Reports, said during Tuesday's hearing that the genetic changes in AquaBounty's salmon amount to a "material" alteration in the food and should be labeled.

Alexis Baden-Mayer, who represented the Organic Consumers Association, said that "consumers want to know if their fish is genetically engineered."

In an FDA document prepared for the hearing, the agency said it "does not consider the fact that a food was made using genetic engineering, in and of itself, to be a material difference."

Industry representatives, including AquaBounty, urged the FDA to follow current labeling rules. AquaBounty's Richard Clothier added that it would clearly label products given to fish growers.

The FDA earlier decided that milk from cows given a growth hormone to produce more milk shouldn't be labeled differently. The FDA said milk from the treated cows was no different from other milk, and a court upheld that reasoning.

The FDA allows milk makers to state on their packages that the milk doesn't come from cows given a growth hormone, so long as the makers don't imply that such milk is healthier or better.

Write to Jennifer Corbett Dooren at jennifer.corbett-dooren@dowjones.com

"A Rose by any other name would smell as sweet..."

From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, 1600

Most companies would have us believe that a change of name would be an indication of a much improved product.  Although this has proven to be true for some companies, it is not always the case for most.  Be that as it may, there is something to be said about the correlation of changing the name of a product or company and boosting its sales.  Take for example a famous search engine that started back in 1996 called "Backrub".  Don't recognize the name?!  I guarantee you know it by its well known name of "Google".

How about a drink called "Brad's Drink" from 1893?  It later changed its name to "Pepsi" in 1898.

Or how about an internet based company that started in September 1995 called "AuctionWeb"?  Don't recognize the name?  Perhaps "EBay" rings a bell...

Recently the Corn Refiners Association Wants to Change the Name of High Fructose Corn Syrup to "Corn Sugar". Here's what the Executive Director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) had to say...

After getting distracted with Zeppoles from Rosa's Bella Cucina, we headed back onto the Hollywood Stage to see the band She and Him and end our day from this fabulous event.  Quite the appropirate ending as I got to see Zooey Deschanel, an angel sent down from Heaven to grace us mere mortals with her elegance, beauty, and earthly aura.

I was a little bit disappointed that I didn't get a chance to meet her in person, perhaps chat with her a little and get a picture taken with her; hand her my business card and say "Zooey, next time that you're in the market for a caterer, look me up..."  Hey, it could happen!

Heirloom Tomatoes Salad on mixed greens with fresh basil, drizzled with strawberry balsamic vinegar and olive oil

Grilled ribeye steak with adobo spice rub on roasted baby potatoes and grilled vegetables