(Bloomberg) -- Cloned cows, pigs and goats and their offspring are safe to enter the U.S. food supply, regulators found amid criticism from lawmakers, consumer groups and worried eaters.
The Food and Drug Administration posted a summary of a final report backing the use of cloned food on its Web site today after a seven-year review. The agency hasn't recommended any special labeling for such products, and the report did not say whether this means a voluntary moratorium on sales, agreed to by the industry in 2001, is lifted.
The proposal drew 30,500 comments from the public, and Congress passed legislation urging the FDA to study cloning further before acting. The agency's decision to move ahead anyway benefits closely held companies, including ViaGen Inc. and Trans Ova Genetics, which have already cloned hundreds of elite animals for breeders around the country.
``The FDA has concluded that meat and milk from clones of cattle, swine and goats, and the offspring of clones from any species traditionally consumed as food, are as safe to eat as food from conventionally bred animals,'' the agency said in its summary report. The FDA declined immediate comment, and scheduled a noon conference with the news media.
European regulators came to the same conclusion as the FDA in a draft assessment of cloning released Jan. 11. The European Food Safety Authority is taking comments on its proposal to allow meat and milk from cloned animals until Feb. 25.
Ethical Debate
Cloning has been a matter of public fascination and ethical debate since Scottish scientists announced in 1997 that they had produced a cloned sheep they named Dolly. Concern that eating products from such animals may be unsafe -- and that the animals themselves are needlessly exposed to more health problems -- increased after Dolly, suffering from an incurable lung disease, was euthanized at an early age.
Surveys show that many American consumers are reluctant to eat animals produced through biotechnology. A third of adults said they would never buy milk or meat from cloned animals even if the FDA determined it was safe, according to a poll released in 2006 by the Center for Food, Nutrition and Agriculture Policy at the University of Maryland in College Park.
Tyson Foods Inc., the largest U.S. meat producer, said it will consider both government regulations and customer preference before deciding whether to sell cloned meat should it become commercially available.
Tyson's Plans
``Tyson currently has no plans to purchase cloned livestock, especially since it will likely be a long time before such animals would even be available for market,'' said Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson in an e-mail response to questions. ``Whatever measures we ultimately take will be guided by government regulations and the desires of our customers and consumers.''
Dean Foods Co., the biggest U.S. dairy distributor, has said it won't use milk from cloned cows because of a potential consumer backlash. The Dallas-based company hasn't decided whether it will use milk from the progeny of clones, spokeswoman Marguerite Copel said on Jan. 7.
ViaGen and Trans Ova have pledged to register all of their livestock clones so food manufacturers can exclude the animals if they choose, though the program won't apply to the natural- born offspring of replicated animals. Testing for this link is impossible, and it shouldn't make consumers wary of eating meat and dairy products, ViaGen Chief Executive Officer Mark Walton said in a Dec. 19 phone interview.
Consumer Concern
``If you were to go ask a consumer today if they were concerned about offspring, they would say `Of course I am,''' Walton said. ``When you educate and provide the information and help them understand that progeny and offspring are not cloned, the comfort level goes way, way up.''
Industry groups including the American Meat Institute, the National Milk Producers Federation, the Grocery Manufacturers Association and the Food Marketing Institute have said they support registering clones as a way to ease public queasiness.
There are now an estimated 650 live clones in the U.S., mostly cattle produced by Austin, Texas-based ViaGen and Trans Ova, of Sioux Center, Iowa. The companies charge about $13,500 to copy a cow, and they expect the clones to be used exclusively for breeding bigger, stronger and perhaps tastier herds.
Cloning allows ranchers to replicate a prize-winning animal or replace one that is injured or aging. About 80 percent of ViaGen's animals so far have gone into the entertainment business as rodeo horses, bucking bulls and show cows. The rest went to ranchers betting the FDA would repeal the voluntary moratorium on sale of food from clones and their offspring.
Senate Amendment
The FDA issued its draft proposal in December 2006 and had said it could announce a decision by the end of 2007.
Senator Barbara A. Mikulski, a Maryland Democrat who has raised objections to cloned food, sent a letter in December to FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach telling him not to ``pull a fast one'' by acting on cloned foods without conducting additional studies sought by lawmakers.
The Senate included an amendment that would have required more study of cloning in a $286 billion farm bill that awaits negotiation with the House. Congress earlier added language urging the FDA to delay action in an omnibus spending measure signed by President George W. Bush.
The Center for Food Safety has also challenged the agency's review of the scientific data supporting cloned food. The FDA relied on incomplete evidence and misrepresented its findings, the Washington-based consumer group said in a 32-page critique submitted among the public comments.
Clone Production
To produce clones, scientists grow copies of cells from the original animal in a lab dish, and then extract genetic material. The DNA from the animal to be cloned is inserted into an egg whose nucleus has been removed, and the resulting embryo is implanted in an animal that will serve as the clone's surrogate mother.
Supporters say the technology isn't a big leap from artificial insemination or genetically modifying rice and corn, tools that are now widely used on cattle ranches and farms.
``This is an additional technology that will find a place to contribute to an increased food supply and a safer food supply,'' said Jerry Baker, chief executive officer of the Federation of Animal Science Societies in Savoy, Illinois, in a Jan. 7 phone interview. The group represents more than 40,000 scientists in animal agriculture around the world.
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