Concern, acceptance surrounds food from clones

BY DELTHIA RICKS | delthia.ricks@newsday.com

8:07 PM EST, January 16, 2008

As food producers voiced complaints about a federal conclusion that meat and milk from cloned animals are safe, surveys of consumers suggest many people have become less wary of animal biotechnology.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced this week that meat and milk from cloned animals are as safe as those from animals bred the old-fashioned way. However, the government has requested that cloning companies continue abiding by a sales moratorium until further notice.

Sensing the inevitable, that products from cloned animals eventually will reach supermarkets, the National Farmers Union in Washington, D.C., is calling for product labeling. Consumers should be aware when foods are derived from clones, said Tom Buis, president of the group, which is supporting the Cloned Food Labeling Act. The measure was authored by Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.).

"In the face of ever-increasing food safety concerns, it is troubling to see the FDA approval of products from cloned animals," Buis said. "There is no data to suggest any consumer demand for such products."

Currently, there are fewer than 1,000 cloned animals nationwide. The technology allows ranchers to reproduce animals with specific genetic characteristics, ensuring continuance of desired traits.

Cloning is the science of asexually producing a group of cells that are genetically identical from a single ancestor. Thus it's possible for scientists to isolate precise genetic characteristics that can, for instance, enhance the quality of meats, ultimately boosting profits for producers. Theoretically, animals can be cloned to produce meats that are leaner and tastier. Also in theory, milk can be produced that is lower in fat and higher in mineral content.

Most existing clones are cattle replicated by ViaGen Inc., in Austin, Texas. Trans Ova Genetics, an Iowa-based company, also has cloned animals as have several major universities.

Danielle Schor, senior vice president for food safety at the International Food Information Council, said a series of surveys conducted by her organization over the past decade indicate the public does not fear genetically enhanced animals.

"We gave them a definition of cloning before we asked the questions," Schor said. The council, she added, defines cloning "as a form of biotechnology that retains desirable traits by producing an animal that is an identical twin."

The council found that 69 percent of Americans have a high level of confidence in the nation's food supply and that 46 percent are "somewhat" or "very likely" to buy meat, milk and eggs from cloned animals -- if the products are deemed safe.

Consumers were more favorable toward food products derived from the offspring of clones, Schor said, than foods derived directly from the clones themselves.

"We have to respect that some people won't be favorable [to cloning]," Schor said. "But it is the FDA's job to make a science-based decision, and that's what it did."

Gregory Jaffe, biotechnology director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, also in Washington, issued a statement yesterday noting there are still too many unanswered questions about cloned animals.

"The FDA has not satisfactorily answered the safety question," Jaffe said. "While the safety of any food cannot be proven with absolute certainty, consumers should have confidence that meat and milk from cloned animals and their offspring will be safe."