After four years of deliberation, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that meat from cloned animals and their offspring is safe to eat.
Read more in this Wired article.
Image: Matt Batchelder
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How many cloned cows do you think are out there? (the generation of each animal costs in the ball park of $40K) It is not like attack of the clones. Only a very small part of the population will get the honor of consuming one of these noble creatures.
Thanks for posting a link to the Wired article Karen. Very interesting indeed.
I've been following the cloned meat issue on and off for a couple of years. Since I'm UK based, my concerns in this regard are closer to home as one might well imagine. That said, I sure don't turn a blind eye to overseas related issues such as this.
I have previously been in touch with Lord Peter Melchett, policy director of the Soil Association (UK) about meat cloning issues and make an effort to keep him up to speed as per his request. As such, I'll send him a link to the Wired article - many thanks for the hat tip.
Fab blog BTW. I hadn't seen this particular Sb before.
I'm not too happy about eating cloned meat. I really don't see a benefit. If it's so safe and the meat quality is supposedly better wouldn't they WANT to label it as cloned meat?? :) Good article.
In other news, a Korean company is offering to clone dogs.
Coincidence? I think not!
I think there manz cloned cows on the market.I will not try the meet.I think the scientists are plying with the nature.That's not good at all.
Because, first, of the knee-jerk emotional reaction some people have to "cloning", and second, because to the best of my knowledge there is no meaningful scientific basis for differetiating cloned meat from uncloned meat.
A little late for that, don't you think?
Human innovators have been "playing with the nature" for tens of thousands of years, ever since the first development of hand tools. Even if we restrict it to tampering with biology, do you think pomeranians evolved naturally, ffs? What's so special about this way of altering parts of nature to serve our convenience that makes it so much more threatening than all the other ways we've been doing that, other than its "creepiness?"
If we're talking deposited embryos, then carried to term, I would only require the things I normally do from my beef - like grass fed, no antibiotics ( I mean no institutionalized antibiotic regimens, not "don't treat cows that get an infection" ), no hormone regimens. I expect someday there will be factories cloning only the best cuts of meat - in those cases I'd want to be more careful about what was used to treat the cell culture.
I don't see any end-product distinction between a clone and a twin, really.
On the other hand, the 'benefits' of cloned meat are manifold, and the risks have little to do with the safety for human consumption. Imagine that you could buy exactly the same steak - you know, that ribeye that you bought two superbowls ago that was insanely good, better than anything before or since. Imagine that a farmer can have 50 of that cow that had the perfect fat to meat distribution, and produced those steaks.
On the other hand, if it's like other technological advances, it would supplant more traditional processes; and if you think it's dangerous to the survival of the food supply to have a single species of grain supplying all of our food, imagine when the bulk of our meat comes from, say, four or five patented individual genotypes. A bovine disease could wipe out the entire technological food chain in weeks, and leave no survivors.
I'm all about appropriate technology. Clone away, but keep an eye on that logistics chain, ok?
I believe that's the first rational concern about cloned meat I've ever heard. This could be a problem, yes; any thoughts on how to mitigate it?
Gross violation of the dignity of cow life. Ethically, morally, humanely wrong for about 20 years.
I don't mind meat that's been cloned.
I don't want meat that's been tortured.
Because, first, of the knee-jerk emotional reaction some people have to "cloning", and second, because to the best of my knowledge there is no meaningful scientific basis for differetiating cloned meat from uncloned meat.
Posted by: Azkyroth | February 23, 2008 7:37 AM
I have the knee jerk reaction. What concerns me is the fact that many times side effects and unforeseen consequences don't show up for years into the future. But with the growing population we may not have any choice!
Dave Briggs :~)