# Is this legal?



## blurry (May 10, 2010)

Saw this ad on CL just wondering if he is allowed to sell these fish. Selling RARE GloFish -- view ad --

Selling 6 rare glo fish for 30$ each.

Fish are genetically modified and not sold anywhere in canada

I have 6 left and selling for 30$ each. Firm.

If interested please TEXT or call 7789866261


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## Tn23 (Apr 21, 2010)

They have these in the usa. I'm not sure if they are legal here or not. But this person appears to be trying to make a quick buck or two. 

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## scott tang (Jan 29, 2012)

sadly yes it is legal


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

If they are dyed they are illegal i believe. According to GloFish - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia they are prohibited to import or sale in Canada. Weirdly Petcetera had some a while back....voiced my concerns and never shopped there again. As for the price they were only about $5 there if memory serves correct.


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## Vancitycam (Oct 23, 2012)

Isn't everything legal in Canada? Haha kidding, everything's legal until you're caught lol. In all seriousness glo fish is a sad product, where's the dislike button .


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## Junior D (Apr 7, 2012)

Not sure.... but I thought I saw similar multi-coloured fluorescent glow fish at Petsmart at Marine Drive and Richmond locations over the New Year holidays.... They look awfully similar but I could be mistaken!


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## liquid_krystale (Dec 13, 2011)

Making transgenic animals that express GFP (green fluorescent protein) happens often in research, but IMO, it's pretty frivolous (not to mention ugly) to do it solely to make some $.


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## grizadams_7mm (Aug 29, 2011)

From what I have read up on the True glo fish, they are usually danios and yes they are illegal to sell in Canada but they are around. the true test is to use a black light and if the fish "POPS" brightly then its been injected. The pick Danios you see at almost every LFS aren't the true died glo fish. I had a couple of the Glos and when the black light was on them the difference between the pink danios and the glo danios was evident. But without the light on them you wouldn't really know.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

Just out of curiosity these fish were not injected with a dye but were bred that way so they will always stay that way and when they breed, their off spring will also "glow" without any further injection required, is that correct?


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## battmanh (Jan 7, 2014)

Fish rookie said:


> Just out of curiosity these fish were not injected with a dye but were bred that way so they will always stay that way and when they breed, their off spring will also "glow" without any further injection required, is that correct?


Yeah if they were not injected and it has been inserted in to their genome instead, their offspring should also express it.


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## scott tang (Jan 29, 2012)

lol news to me i had thought thAT they were legal as i have seen them in manny stores


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## AWW (Apr 22, 2010)

I will shed some light on the topic. 

Glo fish are genetically modified, not died. Years ago I heard they modified them to do a test in a river some place, and that's when the aquarium trade got wind of them. 

My understanding is the only reason they are illegal is because the company has a patent on the fish. That means only they can legally breed and sell them. They are rarely seen in Canada, but they are all over the states.


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## blurry (May 10, 2010)

Looks to me like he's grabbing them from the states and bringing them over to Canada.
RARE Fresh Water GloFish Limited quantities -- VIEW AD --

Selling Rare assorted GloFish 
- Cannot be purchased anywhere in Canada

- Genetically modified fish injected with the gene from jellyfish to give them a fluorescent like color

- Fresh water fish

- LIMITED QUANTITIES

FISH:

Glo TigerBarb - 30$ each
Size - 4 inch ( max )
Colors: -Electric Green

Glo Tetra - 30$ each
Size - 2 inch ( max )
Colors: - Electric Green
- Sunset Orange
- Moonrise Pink
- Galactic Purple

Glo Zebra Tetra - 20$ each
Size - 1.5 inch ( max )
Colors: - Electric Green
- Sunset Orange
- Moonrise Pink
- Galactic Purple

Note: 
-All GloFish Currently for sale are around 1 inch in size
- Fish with Glow more Brightly if the tank they are kept in has a fluorescent bulb

IF INTERESTED OR HAVE ANY QUESTIONS CALL/TEXT 7789866261


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## kim86 (Sep 5, 2012)

Ya these are illegal in Canada. They aren't dyed but have been bred with a gene found in jellyfish, that makes them glow. That way when they're bred together their offspring have the same glow gene present. Genetically modified animals are illegal in Canada, which is why they're not up here but in the US. The fluorescent fish like parrot fish, barbs and danios you see in LFS in Canada have all been dyed - which I wish was illegal, because that stuff is bad news for the fish getting it done to them. At least Glofish live normal lives, whereas the dyed ones don't usually.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

Speaking of genetically altered fish being illegal in Canada, does that apply to all fish? Can someone please link the regulation in this regard please.

About genetically altered fish, is Altantic Salmon considered genetically altered? Their meat certain do not have the same color...If they are considered genetically latered yet are allowed to be sold as food to human, I cannot see how genetically altered fish is illegal for sale as ornamental fish in Canada.

How is "genetically altered" defined? On a boarder term, one may argue that many fish commonly seen today such as flowerhorn is also genetically altered.

I am under the impression that these glofish are not for sale in Canada because there is a legal issue involving some kind of trademark, not because of whether the fish is genetically altered or dyed.


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Google


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic (Apr 22, 2010)

Fish rookie said:


> Speaking of genetically altered fish being illegal in Canada, does that apply to all fish? Can someone please link the regulation in this regard please.
> 
> About genetically altered fish, is Altantic Salmon considered genetically altered? Their meat certain do not have the same color...If they are considered genetically latered yet are allowed to be sold as food to human, I cannot see how genetically altered fish is illegal for sale as ornamental fish in Canada.
> 
> ...


Atlantic salmon have been bred in captivity since at least the 1940s. The ones on fish farms are like Holstein or Hereford cattle, as opposed to wild salmon which would be like buffalo or bison. They are selectively bred (i.e. choosing the biggest and fastest growing males and females for broodstock), not genetically manipulated in a lab somewhere. This is like how they developed fancy guppies from wild endler-type guppies or fancy bettas from drab wild bettas. Just selecting the best broodstock and over time getting what you want for your stock.

The colour is due to the feed. If the feed is high in Astaxanthin, a natural red colouring agent derived from krill and shrimp shells, then the fish's flesh will be redder. That is what happens in the wild. The wild salmon's flesh changes colour, in most cases, based on the food source. For instance, wild sockeye have lots of access to sw crustaceans so their flesh is very red. Kokanee salmon (land-locked sockeye) don't have that access and their flesh is quite pale. Same fish species originally but the lack of food with astaxanthin means the Kokanee only looks like a sockeye on the outside but doesn't have the same deep, bright red that sw sockeyes are famous for.

The glo-fish in question were originally developed to glow brighter in the presence of pollution in the water. They used to be legal and then that trade got shut down a few years ago. What you see for sale (if true glo-fish) are smuggled from the States or perhaps the great-great-great grandchildren fish of those original shipments.


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

A quick call to the SPCA would probably stop that dude from getting by with it. Found this CL ad from somone that obviously cares: Re: Selling RARE GloFish ad (illegal)


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## TomC (Apr 21, 2010)

Diztrbd1 said:


> A quick call to the SPCA would probably stop that dude from getting by with it. Found this CL ad from somone that obviously cares: Re: Selling RARE GloFish ad (illegal)


 The link above says it all. The price of $30 is a ripoff.


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## Rockman (May 19, 2013)

Yeah, Glo fish are genetically modified. This is different from dyed fish, which are albino variety fish injected with colouring in a fairly inhumane way (it can kill them or make them more susceptable to disease). The dye eventually breaks down (assuming they survive that long) and you're left with a regular albino. The production of glo fish isn't particularly inhumane (no worse than any other fancy fish variety, IMO).

Dyed fish are legal in Canada. GMO's, however, have to go through a special approval process before you can import or sell them here. The process is expensive and time consuming, so only GMO's with a high profit potential (ie, GM crops) are worthwhile. So no glo fish.

Personally, I'd far prefer it if Dyed fish were banned. Glo fish, while tasteless and unneccessary, aren't really concerning on an animal welfare front.


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## indreamx (Dec 5, 2013)

I saw this yesterday at petcos bellingham. So sad they do this. 


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## TomC (Apr 21, 2010)

There really is no problem as far as the welfare of the fish is concerned. They have no idea theyve been modified. It happens when they are still eggs.

The illegality arises because of fears that a GM organism will escape and cause problems in the environment, as non-native species currently do all over the world. With something like a coloured Danio, the risks are small. But this is such a new area for the law to deal with that the law makers are (quite rightly) erring on the side of caution. As regards to patents, this is a civil matter, not a legal one.

I once got some red Zebra Danios from a former sponsor. They were quite nice to look at, but my tank went through an unrelated epidemic and they all died before I could breed them.


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## Fish rookie (May 21, 2012)

SeaHorse_Fanatic said:


> Atlantic salmon have been bred in captivity since at least the 1940s. The ones on fish farms are like Holstein or Hereford cattle, as opposed to wild salmon which would be like buffalo or bison. They are selectively bred (i.e. choosing the biggest and fastest growing males and females for broodstock), not genetically manipulated in a lab somewhere. This is like how they developed fancy guppies from wild endler-type guppies or fancy bettas from drab wild bettas. Just selecting the best broodstock and over time getting what you want for your stock.
> 
> The colour is due to the feed. If the feed is high in Astaxanthin, a natural red colouring agent derived from krill and shrimp shells, then the fish's flesh will be redder. That is what happens in the wild. The wild salmon's flesh changes colour, in most cases, based on the food source. For instance, wild sockeye have lots of access to sw crustaceans so their flesh is very red. Kokanee salmon (land-locked sockeye) don't have that access and their flesh is quite pale. Same fish species originally but the lack of food with astaxanthin means the Kokanee only looks like a sockeye on the outside but doesn't have the same deep, bright red that sw sockeyes are famous for.
> 
> The glo-fish in question were originally developed to glow brighter in the presence of pollution in the water. They used to be legal and then that trade got shut down a few years ago. What you see for sale (if true glo-fish) are smuggled from the States or perhaps the great-great-great grandchildren fish of those original shipments.


Thanks for the detailed explanation. I appreciate it.
It is my understanding that glofish is legal in the US and there has not been any problem reported in regard to their release into the environment; while Canada still feels that they do not have enough information to make an informed decision to this issue so this is still illegal in Canada. I am not sure if all genetically modified fish are illegal in Canada though. I cannot find any regulation stating such during my search but I have been busy with other things. It also appears to me that some genetically modified fruits are allowed to be sold to humans in Canada so not all things genetically modified are illegal in Canada.
Although I do not like the look of this kind of fish myself, I am not able to see how this genetically modification process can be inhuman to the glo fish--the fish was once modified while they were still eggs then their offspring have been born to look this way ever since. They are still apparently able to breed but their breeding rate is reported to be a bit lower than natural zebra danio (which is not saying much as danios can breed very fast) due to the fact that they spend a lot of their energy to glow. 
Thanks for the very informative reply Anthony once again.


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## DBam (Aug 9, 2010)

Sure it's frivolous, but calling it inhumane is a stretch. People do GFP transgene studies all the time. I'm sure some buzzwords like "GMO", "transgene" and "thuringiensis" can make people defensive and get the animal rights and organic crops nuts riled up, but most of it doesn't matter in Canada. Actually, most work of this nature is all done on bacteria. If anyone has a problem with studying bacteria, they could always throw their hand soap and antibiotics in the garbage. The more remarkable thing at work is that the zebra danio is a model organism that gets studied A LOT because they're easy to breed and maintain, and they're vertebrates. A few years ago they found that these fish could regenerate damaged heart tissue. This would never be lab-tested on a human. If they can eventually find a way to repair damaged human hearts (no pun intended) they could save heart attack victims. In the meantime the government's doing the right thing by not allowing any transgenics until they know what to sort through.


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## kacairns (Apr 10, 2012)

DBam said:


> Sure it's frivolous, but calling it inhumane is a stretch. People do GFP transgene studies all the time. I'm sure some buzzwords like "GMO", "transgene" and "thuringiensis" can make people defensive and get the animal rights and organic crops nuts riled up, but most of it doesn't matter in Canada. Actually, most work of this nature is all done on bacteria. If anyone has a problem with studying bacteria, they could always throw their hand soap and antibiotics in the garbage. The more remarkable thing at work is that the zebra danio is a model organism that gets studied A LOT because they're easy to breed and maintain, and they're vertebrates. A few years ago they found that these fish could regenerate damaged heart tissue. This would never be lab-tested on a human. If they can eventually find a way to repair damaged human hearts (no pun intended) they could save heart attack victims. In the meantime the government's doing the right thing by not allowing any transgenics until they know what to sort through.


So there might be hope for me regenerating a heart?

Sometimes I find it funny how people are willing to turn a blind eye to say testing on mice to further research into something but get all up in arms about testing other animals... I think anyone who has a problem medical research for the bettering of our lives on animals of any sort (not talking colouring a fish for the aquarium trade here) then they should be the first to step up and lend their body for research so the rest of mankind can benefit =)


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## Ghostryder (Dec 6, 2013)

Fish rookie said:


> It is my understanding that glofish is legal in the US and there has not been any problem reported in regard to their release into the environment; while Canada still feels that they do not have enough information to make an informed decision to this issue so this is still illegal in Canada. I am not sure if all genetically modified fish are illegal in Canada though. I cannot find any regulation stating such during my search but I have been busy with other things. It also appears to me that some genetically modified fruits are allowed to be sold to humans in Canada so not all things genetically modified are illegal in Canada.
> :


From the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

Manufacture or import of living organisms

106. (1) Where a living organism is not specified on the Domestic Substances List and subsection (2) does not apply, no person shall manufacture or import the living organism unless

(a) the prescribed information with respect to the living organism, accompanied by the prescribed fee, has been provided by that person to the Minister on or before the prescribed date; and

(b) the period for assessing the information under section 108 has expired.

AFAIK they are also prohibited in California per state regulation.


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