California to reconsider GM fish ban
Regulators in the state of California are to reconsider their ban on genetically modified fish after one of the commissioners said he was being intensively lobbied by his wife who wishes to keep the fish in her aquarium, says a report in the Oakland Tribune.California banned the sale of GM fish in December 2003 citing ethical concerns. Michigan introduced a ban in January this year, but didn't apply it to the sale of GloFish.
Commissioners in California are now going to approach the Department of Fish and Game to reassess the issue with a final hearing during summer.
This is all good news for the distributor of the GloFish, Texas-based Yorktown Technologies. They want to sell their fish in California and had planned to approach the California officials last month, but backed out of the hearing at the last minute.
In the UK the fish are yet to go on sale. The Ornamental Aquatic Trade Association has called them "bad for the hobby" and 81% of PFK readers believe they should not be sold in this country.
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Matt Clarke: April 02, 2004More: Oakland Tribune
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 | Editor-in-Chief, Matt Clarke, writes the regular Interesting Imports column on rare and unusual fish in the UK aquarium trade. He's kept fish for 30 years and holds a degree, two higher degrees and two diplomas in fish biology, taxonomy and computational biology. |
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