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Meat, milk from cloned animals is safe, FDA says
The Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that food from healthy clones of cattle, swine and goats is safe for human consumption. In a 968-page "final risk assessment," the FDA said, "edible products from healthy clones that meet existing requirements for meat and milk in commerce pose no increased food consumption risk(s) relative to comparable products from sexually-derived animals." The FDA also said it needs more information to determine the safety of meat and milk from cloned sheep. For more information, follow this link.
FDA's announcement about the safety of food from cloned animals raises at least as many questions as it answers. Even FDA admitted in a document accompanying the report that "moral, religious and ethical concerns…have been raised." For livestock producers, the most important question may be, "Will consumers buy food from cloned animals?" There certainly was no shortage of fear-mongering about clones from consumer advocate groups. And one group, the Center for Food Safety, is considering legal action. The group's legal director, Joseph Mendelson, said, "One of the amazing things about this is that at a time when we have a readily acknowledged crisis in our food safety system, the FDA is spending its resources and energy and political capital on releasing a safety assessment for something that no one but a handful of companies wants."
Or do they? The two biggest players in the meat business, Smithfield Foods and Tyson Foods, said they aren’t planning to offer consumers meat from cloned animals anytime soon. Smithfield Foods issued a statement that noted the "science involved in cloning animals is relatively new," and the company would "continue to monitor further scientific research on this technology."
The loudest criticism regarding the FDA announcement, however, centered around labeling. The FDA said agency regulators cannot require cloned products to be labeled as such if there is no material difference between cloned products and food produced by conventional methods. The FDA says no test exists that could distinguish meat from a cloned animal from other meat. However, food companies may label their products as "clone-free." Additionally, foods labeled "organic" would not contain cloned products. — Greg Henderson, Drovers editor
Industry responds to FDA cloning ruling
Most livestock industry officials acknowledged FDA's risk assessment on cloning was scientifically correct, yet some remained wary of how consumers may accept food from cloned animals. For instance, James H. Hodges, president of the American Meat Institute’s Foundation, said "Clearly, the cloning of animals is a new technology and our members will evaluate it, as well as consumer attitudes, very carefully." American Farm Bureau Federation president Bob Stallman, however, endorsed cloning, saying, "It has gone through the appropriate regulatory review process and has been found to be safe; therefore, farmers should have the option of using it. The technology will improve breeding stock and, eventually, the quality, safety and healthfulness of our food. Animal cloning offers great benefits for consumers and farmers."
Bovance, a cloning company formed last year as a joint-venture between ViaGen and Trans Ova Genetics, fully supported FDA's risk assessment. Trans Ova Genetics president Dr. David Faber said, "Confirming the safety of meat and milk produced from clones and their offspring is an important step for food production in the U.S. and around the world. We feel that the FDA study and its findings clear the way for dairy and beef producers to continue their leadership and stewardship of producing a healthy, humane global food supply." For more from Bovance, go to www.drovers.com.
Can't wait for Knabe's take on this!!!!
Meat, milk from cloned animals is safe, FDA says
The Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that food from healthy clones of cattle, swine and goats is safe for human consumption. In a 968-page "final risk assessment," the FDA said, "edible products from healthy clones that meet existing requirements for meat and milk in commerce pose no increased food consumption risk(s) relative to comparable products from sexually-derived animals." The FDA also said it needs more information to determine the safety of meat and milk from cloned sheep. For more information, follow this link.
FDA's announcement about the safety of food from cloned animals raises at least as many questions as it answers. Even FDA admitted in a document accompanying the report that "moral, religious and ethical concerns…have been raised." For livestock producers, the most important question may be, "Will consumers buy food from cloned animals?" There certainly was no shortage of fear-mongering about clones from consumer advocate groups. And one group, the Center for Food Safety, is considering legal action. The group's legal director, Joseph Mendelson, said, "One of the amazing things about this is that at a time when we have a readily acknowledged crisis in our food safety system, the FDA is spending its resources and energy and political capital on releasing a safety assessment for something that no one but a handful of companies wants."
Or do they? The two biggest players in the meat business, Smithfield Foods and Tyson Foods, said they aren’t planning to offer consumers meat from cloned animals anytime soon. Smithfield Foods issued a statement that noted the "science involved in cloning animals is relatively new," and the company would "continue to monitor further scientific research on this technology."
The loudest criticism regarding the FDA announcement, however, centered around labeling. The FDA said agency regulators cannot require cloned products to be labeled as such if there is no material difference between cloned products and food produced by conventional methods. The FDA says no test exists that could distinguish meat from a cloned animal from other meat. However, food companies may label their products as "clone-free." Additionally, foods labeled "organic" would not contain cloned products. — Greg Henderson, Drovers editor
Industry responds to FDA cloning ruling
Most livestock industry officials acknowledged FDA's risk assessment on cloning was scientifically correct, yet some remained wary of how consumers may accept food from cloned animals. For instance, James H. Hodges, president of the American Meat Institute’s Foundation, said "Clearly, the cloning of animals is a new technology and our members will evaluate it, as well as consumer attitudes, very carefully." American Farm Bureau Federation president Bob Stallman, however, endorsed cloning, saying, "It has gone through the appropriate regulatory review process and has been found to be safe; therefore, farmers should have the option of using it. The technology will improve breeding stock and, eventually, the quality, safety and healthfulness of our food. Animal cloning offers great benefits for consumers and farmers."
Bovance, a cloning company formed last year as a joint-venture between ViaGen and Trans Ova Genetics, fully supported FDA's risk assessment. Trans Ova Genetics president Dr. David Faber said, "Confirming the safety of meat and milk produced from clones and their offspring is an important step for food production in the U.S. and around the world. We feel that the FDA study and its findings clear the way for dairy and beef producers to continue their leadership and stewardship of producing a healthy, humane global food supply." For more from Bovance, go to www.drovers.com.
Can't wait for Knabe's take on this!!!!
