For dinner: Genetically altered **super chicken**

[G_j]

http://www.physorg.com/news140970144.html

For dinner: Genetically altered 'super chicken'

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR , Associated Press Writer, Medicine & Health / Other

(AP) -- Super Chicken strutted a step closer to the dinner table Thursday. The government said it will start considering proposals to sell genetically engineered animals as food, a move that could lead to faster-growing fish, cattle that can resist mad cow disease or perhaps heart-healthier eggs laid by a new breed of chickens.

The rules will also apply to drugs and other medical materials from genetically engineered animals, a field with explosive potential.

U.S. supermarkets currently sell no meat from genetically engineered animals. But a Boston-area company called Aqua Bounty Technologies hopes to win approval next year for its faster-growing salmon and make the fish available by 2011. "It tastes just like any other farm-raised salmon," said vice chairman Elliot Entis, who has sampled it.

Reaction from consumer groups was mixed. They welcomed the government's decision to regulate genetically altered animals, but they cautioned that crucial details remain to be spelled out. For example, the Food and Drug Administration does not plan to require that all genetically engineered meat, poultry and fish be labeled as such. It would be labeled only if there was a change in the final product, such as low-cholesterol filet mignon.

"They are talking about pigs that are going to have mouse genes in them, and this is not going to be labeled?" said Jean Halloran, director of food policy for Consumers Union. "We are close to speechless on this." Consumers Union publishes Consumer Reports magazine.

..more..

[NightWatcher]

1. Nightwatcher goes vegitarian in 3..2..1.....

but I do like the hormones in milk, my boobs are huge

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. I don't like the hormones in milk.

My husband has PMS all the time now.

[VeggieTart]

2. Now do you still wonder why some of us are vegan?

And you'll be glad to know that in six years of veganism, my boobs haven't shrunk a bit.

[Duke Newcombe]

8. No...nevermind...deleted...

too easy to pick up a tombstone.

Duke

[endthewar]

11. Yeah, vegetables don't have genes

:crazy:

[chupacabranation]

22. One-year organic vegan here.

My boobs have actually gotten bigger.

The rest of me has gotten smaller.

I'm not really sure how that works but it's a great bonus.

[hvn_nbr_2]

4. When pigs fly

Oh, wait...

[bsdetector]

5. Not a problem to me. Every living thing is "genetically altered" by evolution

and has been for a billion years. We're just speeding it up.
:D

[G_j]

10. brilliant, scientifically based analysis

.
:sarcasm:

[endthewar]

12. Hope you avoided ever getting a vaccine in your lifetime

Seeing as how you hate genetic alterations and stuff. :crazy:

[G_j]

13. wait,

you're not the one I was responding to, and none of those words are mine,
never mind..

[bsdetector]

19. No need to apologize, I realize some people don't "believe" in evolution.

:eyes:

[GirlieQ]

14. Thank you for being rational.

As much as DU harps about Republicans being ignorant, there's a definite 'scientists are scary' mentality here.

I meant to post this earlier, but accidentally double-posted it in the other GM thread:



You like corn? It started out as a grass in Mexico.

Drink milk? We've modified cows to produce more milk for longer periods of time.

Eat meat? We've modified cows to make steaks bigger, better marbled, and more resilient.

Do you take insulin? That comes from E. coli. Granted, the E. coli was actually modified by scary scary scientists, and they were probably wearing *gasp* lab coats! The horrors! I mean, they created something totally awesome and way less allergy-inducing and saved thousands of lives!

Seriously, though. We've been messing with genes for millions of years. Just look at dogs. While we might not have used modern methods in selectively breeding animals and crops, it's the same concept. What if corn produced twice the ears, with half the nutrients? How many people could we feed? What does it matter if the genetic change is in a lab or in a field?

[endthewar]

17. Couldn't agree with you more

However, it's not their fault. They're just victims of the media always trying to find new ways to scare the public.

[chupacabranation]

27. I don't believe scientists are scary.

But I still avoid eating animal flesh, for more than just moral reasons.

There's a lot of troubling, compounded dangers in meat already. Increased pesticides/hormones. Eating it once, no problem. Eating it day-in, day-out, until it comprises your system...who knows.

This is just another troubling tidbit on top of the pile. We're not exactly gene modification experts yet - our facility with getting exactly what we want (and not what we don't want) really remains to be seen.

Just less to worry about only eating plants.

[chupacabranation]

29. Oh and also...

...all that prion stuff.

That's pretty scary stuff too. Which seems to be exacerbated by eating what's closer to you in the food chain.

[bsdetector]

32. Cows are not normally in -our- food chain since they're herbivores.

The danger comes from feeding them meat products from their OWN species. I don't know what genius started that goofy practice but he should have his testicles fed to a Komodo. While still attached.
:evilgrin:

[chupacabranation]

35. I'm a herbivore.

So it's in my food chain.

I suppose what I meant, is eating those organisms genetically similar to one's self.

[bsdetector]

41. Actually you're an omnivore (if you're a human). You may be a vegetarian which is a different thing

Humans are evolved to be omnivoracious...individuals can eschew (so to speak) meat or veggies but that doesn't affect their evolved "normal" status. Interestingly, cannibalism is not unheard of among chimpanzees, and of course fish eat mostly other fish with no obvious ill effects that I know of. Aren't chupacabras carniverous? :D

[chupacabranation]

43. Hmm.

Heard of kuru?

Haha about chupacabras. I'm not sure they exist.

[bsdetector]

31. I avoid spinach and jalapenos...not fond of e-coli.

:shrug:

[chupacabranation]

33. The difference

Is that not all widely available spinach and jalapenos have e-coli.

All widely available meat has the problem of concentrated pesticides/hormones/disease - b/c it is inherent and not caused by getting the product to market.

[banana convention]

42. E-coli can only come from an animal source, though!

It's not inherent in plant foods, so I guess I can thank factory farms for the contamination, huh?

(BTW, I never even paused during the so-called outbreak last winter. As I suspected, the FDA never really determined what produce has supposedly been infected and knowing how the cattle industry treated Oprah when she talked about Mad Cow and then had to retract it, it wouldn't surprise me if the illness was with diseased meat!)

[BlooInBloo]

16. And by breeding. And by domesticating. And, and and.

[TheWatcher]

21. Bon Appetit Then!

Stupid Is as Stupid Does.

[bsdetector]

25. Thank you. I'll be happy to take the Luddites' share.

:D

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

6. Cool. Hopefully It Helps Make Certain Foods Cheaper And Brings Better Foods To Market.

Sounds cool!

[Duke Newcombe]

7. Cool. Now Daddy will *ALWAYS* get the big piece of chicken.

...'cause there'll be double breasts and thighs and whatnot.... :)

Duke

[bsdetector]

20. John Madden will be lobbying for 8-legged turkeys!

:D :rofl:

[The Straight Story]

23. Turducken

:rofl:

[bsdetector]

24. That's a great idea! Eliminate all that labor-intensive preparation!

:D

[The Straight Story]

26. Welcome to DU!

What brought you here my friend?

[bsdetector]

30. Mind-numbing terror, mostly...seeing who McC picked for a running mate.

And remembering back in 2000 I was absolutely certain GWBush would never occupy our White House.


:scared:

[The Straight Story]

34. Well, if you ever need anything

PM me. DU has been my home for 4 years now, a lot of wonderful and caring people here.

Always glad to see new faces here!

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

9. Ironically, they don't "taste just like chicken"

[cobalt1999]

15. LOL

:rofl:

[Gwendolyn]

18. There's something a little "Island of Dr. Moreau" about it.

What am I saying. It's totally Island of Dr. Moreau.

[NoPasaran]

28. I thought Super Chicken was supposed to be out fighting crime

What's next, Wonder Hotdogs?

[TalkingDog]

36. I am sooooo giving away my age and lack of utter coolness....

*can't believe nobody posted this*

[Phoonzang]

37. I'm not sure why the genetic makeup of the meat would have any effect on the person eating it.

When we eat meat, we're not absorbing the genes like a xenomorph from Aliens. Now I can see how it effects the characteristics of the meat (cholesterol, fat content) because it affects the characteristics of the creature the meat came from. If the pig you eat has mouse genes in it, so what? How does that effect the person eating it. Besides them thinking it's "icky"...

Now artificial hormones are a different matter...

[chupacabranation]

39. If you change the genes...

...you change the traits.

In plants, this may not be so bad. Who doesn't want a bigger, redder tomato, caused by a change in the chemical structure of the acid?

But in animals...well, we just don't know. Maybe it will increase the amount of hormones the animals have. It might create or activate diseases. Yes, we have been doing this naturally for years, but not with the ultimate precision or ultimate power genetic modification tools have given us.

Unlike some on this board, and I don't claim to know everything about what it could entail. I'm no genetic scientist (and I doubt they are, either).

That's why I think it's smarter to avoid it.

[Mari3333]

38. another reason i will continue being vegan. n/t

[mainegreen]

40. You know, I'll wait thirty years, see if anyone else gets sick first.

Meanwhile, I'll eat grass fed, organic beef, and truly free range chicken, and Maine-caught fish.

You all be the first round.

Who knows, maybe it'll work out! But you know, sometimes it doesn't. I doubt science is any more immune from food mistakes than history is. No need for me to take the risk personally.

[Taverner]

44. Cloned food I can handle

GMO's are not ready for prime time...