Much of the fish feed now used in open-net pens includes GM soy — an ingredient that Monsanto and Cargill (which has an aquaculture feed division) have been pushing since 2012.
By December 2014, there wereย at least 19 varietiesย of fish feed containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Ironically, Norway has recently decided to stop approving GM feed for fish farms. The Norwegian Biotechnology Advisory Board and the Norwegian Food Safety Authority have stated that GMOs in aquaculture could lead to an environmental disaster.
As Food & Water Watch reported in its 2012 report, ‘Factory-Fed Fish: How the Soy Industry Is Expanding into the Sea’, GM soy is not a natural food for fish and by eating it, farmed fish don’t get necessary nutrients and they excrete more waste, which pollutes the ocean floor.
Share this article
As well, excess GM feed spills into the open ocean, causing unknown dangers to wild marine life. “Our seas are not Roundup ready,”ย saidย executive director Wenonah Hauter at the time of the report’s release.
According to the websiteย farmedanddangerous.org, both GM soy and GM canola are fed to farmed salmon. GM fish-feed could be considered a “deleterious substance” added to waters frequented by fish, although it is not specifically mentioned in the Feb. 17 Open Letter to Prime Minister Harper signed by 120 Canada scientists and others.
Read full, original article:ย Fish-farm madness: Why does industry receive preference under Fisheries Act?
