FDA’s approval of PIC’s gene-editing technology marks a major milestone for consumers, farmers and the entire pork industry who have desperately hoped for a solution to PRRS, says PIC COO Matt Culbertson.

The gene edit used in PIC’s PRRS-resistant pig has been determined safe and effective by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). FDA granted approval to PIC on April 30, putting PIC among the first companies to gain approval for gene editing in commercial livestock in the U.S.

“We have spent years conducting extensive research, validating our findings and working with the FDA to gain approval,” Matt Culbertson, PIC’s chief operating officer, says in a release. “Today marks a major milestone for consumers, farmers and the entire pork industry who have desperately hoped for a solution to PRRS.”

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) costs the U.S. pork industry more than $1.2 billion per year. This FDA-approved gene edit will be used to breed PIC’s PRRS-resistant pigs, which are resistant to this devastating, global swine disease.