An application seeking approval to use a genome-edited tiger puffer fish as food was lodged Friday with the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.
Kyoto-based start-up Regional Fish Institute Ltd. submitted the application for a tiger puffer in which genomes are efficiently modified with genome-editing technology.
At a meeting of the ministry's expert panel held Friday, the panel confirmed that the pufferfish does not have any safety problems. The company plans to take the fish to market.
It is the third application for a genome-edited food in Japan, following those for tomatoes and red sea bream. It was also the second application made by this company.
This kind of tiger puffer was developed by a team of researchers led by Kyoto University. Genes in the fish that control appetite are knocked out by the genome-editing technology, boosting their appetite and the speed at which they gain weight.
The genome-edited fish become 1.9 times heavier than the same species grown conventionally in the same farming period.
This means they can be shipped in shorter periods than ordinary tiger puffers, which need more than two years, and thus is an advantage.
The company branded the genome-edited fish "22-seiki fugu" (puffer fish of the 22nd century) and began a crowdfunding campaign online Friday to finance commercialization of the products.
The company will launch trial sales of dishes using the fish, such as sashimi, which donors to the campaign can reserve.
The reserved products will be delivered from late November.
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