FDA Approves Milk-Boosting Drug for Cows

The Food and Drug Administration Friday approved the sale and use of a genetically engineered hormone that increases milk production in cows.

The agency refused to require labeling for milk and other foods from cows treated with the hormone, recombinant bovine somatotropin, or bST.

“This has been one of the most extensively studied animal drug products to be reviewed by this agency,” said Dr. David A. Kessler, the FDA commissioner. “The public can be confident that milk and meat from bST-treated cows is safe to consume.”

“There is virtually no difference in milk from treated and untreated cows,” said Kessler, explaining why the agency declined to require labeling. “In fact, it’s not possible using current scientific techniques to tell them apart.”

The approval represents a major victory for Monsanto Co., which first asked for approval nine years ago. But the drug will not be used immediately because of a 90-day moratorium imposed during the summer by Congress.

The moratorium will give the White House Office of Management and Budget time to study the possible reaction by consumers and the impact of the drug’s use on the dairy economy.

The hormone is a unique product of genetic engineering because it increases an animal’s food output without adding the genetically engineered product to the food.

Opponents say the drug will drive many small dairy farmers out of business by increasing an already overabundant supply of milk. They say this, in turn, will cause the government to spend more for support payments.

Supporters dismiss the claim, arguing that increased production from fewer cows will make all farmers more efficient.

The drug will be marketed under the name Posilac.

The genetically engineered product increases milk output by supplementing a cow’s natural bST, a hormone produced by the pituitary gland. Milk from treated cows has been found to have the same nutritional value and composition as milk from untreated cows, FDA said.

Industry groups, including the Grocery Manufacturers of America, argued against the labeling requirement. Opponents of labeling said requiring the labels would unnecessarily raise consumer fears about a product that is safe.