The Food and Drug Administration is helping U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski draft legislative language regarding mandatory labeling of genetically engineered salmon products, spurring her to lift a hold on a nominee for Commissioner of the FDA.
Dr. Robert Califf was approved to be the FDA’s commissioner by one Senate panel in November. But Alaska’s senior Senator stated she would pause the decision until she got some guarantees regarding “Frankenfish”.
Sen. Murkowski: “We have attempted to address some of the issues that I have raised through the omnibus appropriations bill that we moved forward in December. We included a mandate in language that would require the FDA to not allow the introduction into interstate commerce of any product containing genetically engineered salmon until the FDA publishes final labeling guidelines. And I want the assurances that that is in fact what is going to happen.”
In a release Thursday, Senator Murkowski stated, “I am officially lifting my hold on Dr. Robert Califf, and I look forward to working with him in the future for the health and well-being of Alaskans.”
The FDA was previously considering allowing genetically modified salmon products to be sold without mandatory labeling as such, which Murkowski said would hurt natural salmon sales.
