Food sources such as shrimp, pork, and beef being treated with mRNA gene-therapy technology may be introduced into the nation’s food supply in the near future.
ViAqua, an Israeli biotechnology company, announced this month it is working on introducing an orally administered RNA-particle vaccine to shrimp farming after receiving $8.25 million from a group of venture capitalists.
ViAqua stated in its press release:
Aquaculture is essential for improving food security, providing a healthy and sustainable food source, and protecting wild fish stocks in the face of growing demand for marine protein. But disease management is currently the biggest issue facing the aquaculture industry, resulting in more than $8.5 billion in economic impact for the shrimp industry alone, according to an analysis from Kontali.
To address this problem, ViAqua has developed a biotechnology-based oral delivery platform for the targeted administration of RNA-based solutions to improve disease resistance in aquaculture.
“Oral delivery is the holy grail of aquaculture health development due to both the impossibility of vaccinating individual shrimp and its ability to substantially bring down the operational costs of disease management while improving outcomes,” said Shai Ufaz, chief executive officer of ViAqua. “We are excited to bring this technology to market to address the need for affordable disease solutions in aquaculture.”
According to World Atlas, shrimp is the most widely served seafood in the United States, followed by salmon and tuna. ViAqua explained that shrimp are “very susceptible to disease due to their lack of adaptive immune systems, and there are currently no products available that address shrimp disease today.” Thus, their first product will be a feed supplement to “enhance resistance to viral infections in shrimp, with the initial application targeting White Spot [Syndrome] Virus (WSSV), which causes an annual loss of around $3 billion and a 15 percent reduction in global shrimp production.”
ViAqua is currently looking at bringing their product to market, “with plans to begin production in India at the beginning of 2024.”
According to an article from The Defender, “Since 2018, pork producers have been using customizable mRNA-based ‘vaccines’ on their herds. Americans have been eating pork treated with gene therapy for nearly five years already, and even more of our meat supply is about to get the same treatment. mRNA-lipid nanoparticle shots for avian influenza are in the works, as are mRNA shots for cows. Lobbyists for the Cattlemen’s Association recently confirmed they intend to use mRNA ‘vaccines’ in cattle, which might affect both dairy and beef.”
Dr. Lew Strickland at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture responded to concerns about mRNA vaccines in livestock, stating, “There are no current mRNA vaccines licensed for use in beef cattle in the United States. Cattle farmers and ranchers do vaccinate cattle to treat and prevent many diseases, but presently none of these vaccines include mRNA technology.”
He added that “research on mRNA vaccines for use in livestock has been ongoing for more than a decade, which suggests that at some point mRNA vaccines may be available for use in U.S. cattle. However, this will not happen before there has been sufficient research and significant layers of government review and approval.”
The Epoch Times reported that Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America (R-CALF USA) “has raised concerns over using mRNA vaccines in cattle”:
In April 2023, R-CALF USA met with medical doctors and a molecular biologist regarding the status of mRNA injections in the global protein supply chain. Veterinarian Max Thornsberry reported that some researchers have found that mRNA and its coded virus could pass to humans who have consumed dairy or meat products from an mRNA-injected animal.
In an R-CALF press release, Thornsberry stated that
the dilemma for beef is that the U.S. is importing more and more beef from many different countries, some of which either already are or plan to begin using mRNA in cattle for such cattle diseases as foot-and-mouth disease and lumpy skin disease. This points to the urgent need for MCOOL (mandatory country of origin labeling)…. Consumers deserve the right to choose whether to consume beef from a country where mRNA injections are being given to cattle, and the only way they can have that choice is if Congress passes MCOOL for beef.
More research is needed on mRNA in meats and what happens when they are handled and consumed. According to a Global Research article:
Merely handling raw meat contaminated with mRNA products is likely the equivalent to being exposed to ‘shedding’ from vaccine recipients. And even though stomach acid likely destroys mRNA sequences, there is absorption that takes place in the mouth, under the tongue, which is why many medications and supplements — including CBD oils and zinc — are often best absorbed under the tongue rather than being swallowed.
Thus, merely introducing mRNA-vaccinated animal meat products into your mouth, if not fully cooked, may expose you to a kind of ‘food shedding’ of mRNA products that can be absorbed into your blood and circulated throughout your body. This can include proteins which are alien to the human body.
As studies continue on mRNA-vaccinated animal products, it is important that consumers be able to make good decisions on which foods are safe and/or coming from a trusted source.
The Epoch Times notes that several states — including Tennessee, Idaho, Arizona, Texas, and Missouri — have already drafted or proposed legislation to require the labeling of products derived from animals administered mRNA vaccines.
