Genetic Engineering and the Threat to Farm Animals

Abstract

In 1985, the world looked on horrified as scientists at the United States Department of Agriculture’s Beltsville research centre called in the media to see the first ever genetically engineered farm animals - creatures that became known as the Beltsville pigs. A 1994 review paper from scientists in India refers to many genetic engineering experiments with fish including several where the human growth hormone gene has been transferred to Atlantic salmon, trout, tilapia, goldfish, loach and catfish. As the world’s oceans are already being fished to capacity, many see aquaculture - fish farming - as the way to produce animal protein on a vast scale. Although the experiments to induce increased growth rates and muscle development continue, much of the focus of farm animal genetic engineering is on the production of specific proteins in milk. Genetic engineering and cloning are in the developmental stage - and are using an increasing number of farm animals.