On tomorrow's menu: cloned steaks, and diners none the wiser

June 27 2003

Consumers in the United States will probably not know when they buy 
hamburgers, bacon and milk products from cloned animals, which could 
be available by next year.  

John Matheson, a regulatory review scientist at the US Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA), said the agency would not require labels on 
cloned animal products if they were considered as safe as traditional 
food. "If we find no problems with the products we have no legal basis 
to require labels or have companies differentiate between them," he told 
an annual biotechnology industry conference on Wednesday.  

Cloned animals, such as cattle, sheep and poultry, can be farmed to 
provide more milk or eggs than their counterparts. Researchers can 
also enhance the nutritional value of food, including lowering 
cholesterol in eggs and producing leaner meat with enhanced vitamin 
content.  

A cloned calf can sell for as much as $US82,000 ($123,000).

The FDA was expected to release its risk assessment concerning the 
new technology within a few months. The report will be the foundation 
for new FDA guidelines, which could allow these products to be 
available by next year.  

"These products are perfectly safe," said the chief scientific officer of 
the Georgia-based ProLinia Inc, Steven Stice. "There's no need for
labels."  

The privately owned company, which sells cloned cows and pigs, was 
in discussions with the mega- pork producer Smithfield Foods Inc, Mr 
Stice said.  

Last year the National Academy of Sciences found no significant health 
risks from cloned animal products. But the report did recommend 
stronger US government oversight to ensure its safety.  

The legal director of the Centre for Food Safety, Joe Mendelson, said 
it hoped the FDA would allow consumers to make a choice on whether to 
buy cloned meat. "I certainly think consumer views are material and 
should be a legal basis for labelling."  

How consumers react to cloned animal meat could significantly 
influence the commercialisation of future biotech products.  

Erik Forsberg, vice-president of the Wisconsin-based Infigen Inc, said 
consumer acceptance of cloned animal meat would help alleviate fears 
surrounding animal tissue transplants. The privately owned company 
produces cloned cows and pigs in hopes of selling its organs for human 
use.  

Reuters

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Source: Sydney Morning Herald ...
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/06/26/1056449368262.html


Cheers, Steve..

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