The Daily Dish: June 1, 2016

I'm Brian Sheehan; this is The Daily Meal's Daily Dish, the place where we highlight everything that's trending in the world of all things food and drink.

The controversial genetically modified salmon engineered by AquaBounty, AquAdvantage, has been approved for commercial sales by Health Canada after a comprehensive assessment. This study took into account how the fish is engineered, how its composition and nutritional profile compares to non-GMO salmon, the health status of the fish, and its potential to be toxic or allergenic. The same fish was approved by the FDA in November 2015,  however the FDA has since banned imports until labeling guidelines are finalized, a process which could take years. AquAdvantage could be on Canadian grocery shelves within a year, as a special committee will make its labeling recommendations within the year.

Pizza Hut is making a big announcement about ingredients in its pizzas. The chain will be slowly phasing out artificial preservatives in cheese, antibiotics in chicken, and BHA/BHT from all meats. Expect these three controversial additives to be gone by mid-2017. Last year, Pizza Hut announced that it would be the first nationwide chain to remove artificial colors and additives. 

Nitrogen-brewed coffee comes to Starbucks this summer to caffeinate you and cool you down at the same time. The coffee chain announced the addition of nitro cold brew coffee kegs to 500 stores in major cities like Portland, Seattle, New York, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco will take effect by the end of this summer. Nitro coffee is infused with nitrogen, chemical element number 7. According to Starbucks, iced coffee consumption has increased 75 percent in the past decade, and nearly 340 percent in the past five years, which is in part due to the nitro-brewed coffee trend.