EPA Could Approve GMO Mosquitoes for Consumers’ Backyards
December 3rd, 2024Via: The Defender:
A U.K.-based biotech company is seeking U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approval to sell genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes directly to U.S. consumers as a “biopesticide.”
If the EPA approves the company’s product registration application, Oxitec could sell boxes of GM Aedes aegypti mosquitoes — under the brand name “Friendly” — directly to consumers across the U.S. in stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s, according to GMO Free USA.
After customers add water to the boxes, the GM mosquitoes hatch and take flight.
According to Oxitec:
“Friendly males carry a self-limiting gene that when passed on, prevents their offspring from surviving to adulthood. With regular releases of Friendly males, the number of offspring … is reduced, resulting in a reduction in the pest insect population.”
Critics say Oxitec has failed to scientifically show that its GM mosquitos are safe for human health, endangered species and the environment.
