Genetically Modified (GM) salmon producer AquaBounty said Thursday it has kicked off its first commercial harvest from the company’s Indiana farm.

Earlier in May AquaBounty said it has already received purchase orders for five metric tons of its AquAdvantage salmon.

“After years of research, innovation, and anticipation, AquaBounty's first commercial GE salmon harvest is here,” the company said in an update on May 27.

“As we speak, our team is harvesting salmon for United States distribution.”

AquaBounty will continue to ramp production to its full capacity throughout the year, it said.

Samuels and Son Seafood, a Philadelphia-based seafood distributor of AquaBounty’s Atlantic salmon, has been the only customer so far to publicly announce it is selling the salmon.

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AquaBounty has also not yet announced additional customers beyond Samuels and Son.

“We have received very positive interest from a variety of customers representing seafood distributors, food service operators and retailers and are thrilled that the first harvest is already fully committed," AquaBounty CEO Sylvia Wulf told IntraFish at the beginning of the month.

The company missed a hoped-for April launch date for US consumers to be able to purchase the controversial fish -- the first GM animal to be approved for human consumption in the country.

In August of 2017, AquaBounty made its first sale of its genetically modified AquAdvantage salmon to unnamed customers in Canada.

The company later revealed in an interview with the CBC that the buyers of 4.5 metric tons of the company's fish were using it in high-end sashimi items.