FDA Considering Letting Genetically-Engineered Enviropigs Go To Market

November 17, 2008 7:33 a.m. EST

Ontario, Canada (AHN) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is considering letting a genetically-engineered pig go on the market for human consumption.

The pigs, trademarked Enviropigs by researchers at the University of Guelph in Ontario, produce manure that contains less phosphorus, which makes it less polluting.

Pig manure is used for fertilizer, but it contains high levels of phosphorus, which pigs have difficulty breaking down in their cereal grain diets. Phosphorus finds its way into groundwater after the manure is spread on crops.

Enviropigs keep the phosphorus in their stomachs, reducing the amount in manure by about 60 percent, according to the pigs' developer John Phillips.

There is concern, however, about the safety of consuming meat from genetically engineered meat.

The FDA has given no time-frame for when it may issue a decision on letting the pigs be sold in the U.S.