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GLOWING FISH JUST TOO HOT FOR CALIFORNIA
`TRANSGENIC' PETS AREN'T WELCOME
By Linda Goldston
Mercury News
Tiny zebra fish that glow bright red are expected to sell like neon hotcakes around the country come January.
But tropical-fish fanciers in California will have to drive out of state or turn to the Web to buy the world's first genetically engineered pet. State regulators banned sales of the trademarked fluorescent GloFish after a hearing Wednesday.
``For me it's a question of values; it's not a question of science,'' said Sam Schuchat, a member of the state Fish and Game Commission. ``I think selling genetically modified fish as pets is wrong.''
California is the only state with a ban on transgenic aquatic species, and the commission refused to make an exception for GloFish, the tropical zebra fish infused with the gene of a sea anemone. Conservation groups and commercial fishers cited concerns that the fish could escape or be released into waterways and cross-breed with other fish. The ban stems from the fear that transgenic farmed fish, such as salmon, could get loose and devastate wild fish populations.
GloFish promoters plan to start selling the fish Jan. 5.
And even at a cost of $10 to $15 each -- $5 wholesale -- sales ``would have been huge,'' said Bill Hughes, owner of the Fish Tank in Sunnyvale.
``This is a fish that every kid would have had in his tank. We would have been selling hundreds a week.''
Opponents of transgenic pets hailed the decision as precedent-setting as they lobby for regulation on the national level. Without federal regulation, said Rebecca Spector of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, the nation may be facing ``a new era of unregulated transgenic pets.''
Fish-store owners said the ban will slow down the fad in California a bit -- just long enough to order one on the Internet or drive to another state to buy a glowing red fish.
``I had a customer come in a couple of hours ago who said, `As soon as they're available, I want one,' '' Brian Clemons, owner of Brian's Fish World in San Jose, said Wednesday night. ``Instead of banning things, they should regulate them a little better.''
Originally, the fish were developed by researchers in Singapore to help detect the presence of water pollutants by changing color. But entrepreneurs quickly sniffed the potential for hot fish sales.
``Customers have been bringing me articles from the paper and calling to ask about them,'' said Hughes, the Sunnyvale store owner. ``These fish will be all over California from the Internet. It's the local fish store that gets hurt.''
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Stupid. I want to engineer my own pet! I want my dog not to shed unless I tell it to! Or maybe one with a built in bottle opener!
Really, this is cool, and is another reason that Californians are just plain stupid and will get left behind with genetic engineering. Makes me mad to see.
GLOWING FISH JUST TOO HOT FOR CALIFORNIA
`TRANSGENIC' PETS AREN'T WELCOME
By Linda Goldston
Mercury News
Tiny zebra fish that glow bright red are expected to sell like neon hotcakes around the country come January.
But tropical-fish fanciers in California will have to drive out of state or turn to the Web to buy the world's first genetically engineered pet. State regulators banned sales of the trademarked fluorescent GloFish after a hearing Wednesday.
``For me it's a question of values; it's not a question of science,'' said Sam Schuchat, a member of the state Fish and Game Commission. ``I think selling genetically modified fish as pets is wrong.''
California is the only state with a ban on transgenic aquatic species, and the commission refused to make an exception for GloFish, the tropical zebra fish infused with the gene of a sea anemone. Conservation groups and commercial fishers cited concerns that the fish could escape or be released into waterways and cross-breed with other fish. The ban stems from the fear that transgenic farmed fish, such as salmon, could get loose and devastate wild fish populations.
GloFish promoters plan to start selling the fish Jan. 5.
And even at a cost of $10 to $15 each -- $5 wholesale -- sales ``would have been huge,'' said Bill Hughes, owner of the Fish Tank in Sunnyvale.
``This is a fish that every kid would have had in his tank. We would have been selling hundreds a week.''
Opponents of transgenic pets hailed the decision as precedent-setting as they lobby for regulation on the national level. Without federal regulation, said Rebecca Spector of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, the nation may be facing ``a new era of unregulated transgenic pets.''
Fish-store owners said the ban will slow down the fad in California a bit -- just long enough to order one on the Internet or drive to another state to buy a glowing red fish.
``I had a customer come in a couple of hours ago who said, `As soon as they're available, I want one,' '' Brian Clemons, owner of Brian's Fish World in San Jose, said Wednesday night. ``Instead of banning things, they should regulate them a little better.''
Originally, the fish were developed by researchers in Singapore to help detect the presence of water pollutants by changing color. But entrepreneurs quickly sniffed the potential for hot fish sales.
``Customers have been bringing me articles from the paper and calling to ask about them,'' said Hughes, the Sunnyvale store owner. ``These fish will be all over California from the Internet. It's the local fish store that gets hurt.''
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Stupid. I want to engineer my own pet! I want my dog not to shed unless I tell it to! Or maybe one with a built in bottle opener!
Really, this is cool, and is another reason that Californians are just plain stupid and will get left behind with genetic engineering. Makes me mad to see.
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