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FDA’s regulation of livestock gene editing comes under fire

The way that the Food and Drug Administration is handling regulatory oversight of gene editing for livestock is coming under fire.

The National Pork Producers Council says FDA’s process is going nowhere and the group has renewed its call for USDA to assume regulatory oversight of gene editing for livestock.

During a panel discussion on the topic Thursday at USDA’s Ag Outlook Forum, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts said the issue needs to be addressed.

“This is an area where it’s ripe for really taking a look at what is the regulatory process now between the FDA and the USDA and what’s not working, so that we can get rid of it and create an environment where companies can be successful and we can innovate,” Ricketts said.

Barb Glenn with the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture said gene editing can improve animal health and animal welfare.

“Gene editing shows strong potential to eliminate, for example, the need to dehorn cattle, specifically dairy cattle; to confer resistance to viral diseases of livestock and poultry; and reduce the need for antibiotic use in livestock,” said Glenn.

Gene editing has no more risk than traditional breeding of livestock, Glenn said.

NPPC says FDA’s inaction is putting the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace.

“The pace of FDA’s process to develop a regulatory framework for this important innovation only reinforces our belief that the USDA is best equipped to oversee gene editing for livestock production,” said Jim Heimerl, a pork producer from Johnstown, Ohio and president of the National Pork Producers Council. “U.S. agriculture is one our nation’s most successful export products; we can’t afford to cede leadership of gene editing to other countries.”