For related articles and more information, please visit OCA’s Genetic Engineering page, and our Millions Against Monsanto page.

Not even its creators have tasted it yet.

Still wallowing in the bureaucratic muck of regulatory approval
processes in Canada and the United States, the genetically modified
“Enviropig” is likely years away from potential human consumption.

But the battle between proponents of the cleaner-pooping pig and a large chunk of Ontario’s “sustainable’ farming community may already be coming to a sizzle.

“We’re trying to turn the heat up on this,” says Sean McGivern, president of the National Farmers Union’s Ontario branch.

“It’s a file we’ve been on for a long time, but we just finally felt it was the time to become more vocal about it,” says McGivern, whose group represents about 2,500 small-scale farmers across the province.

Developed 12 years ago at the University of Guelph, Enviropigs utilize the tiny splices of mouse and bacterial DNA inserted into their genomes to radically cut the water-polluting phosphorous content of their manure.