Livestock Cloning in America

      With increased concern about food safety, it is more important than ever that consumers stay informed about the foods they eat.  While the Food and Drug Administration has approved cloned meat for human consumption, it is critical that the public understand the cloning process and to make informed decisions about the consumption of cloned meat.

     In December 2006, the FDA issued a draft risk assessment of meat and milk from cloned animals.  While the FDA does not recommend that cloned sheep be used for human consumption due to a lack of information, the report noted, “ that meat and milk from clones of adult cattle, pigs and goats and their offspring, are as safe to eat as food from conventionally bred animals.”  These results corresponded with a previous study by the National Academies of Sciences, released in 2002.

     Despite these findings, the general public is decidedly squeamish about the prospect of buying cloned meat.  63% of consumers polled by the International Food Information Council said they would not buy meat, milk and eggs from clones.

     What is Cloning?

     Although there are several types of cloning, the one most reported on and discussed is referred to as “Recombinant DNA Technology,” through which an animal has the same nuclear DNA as its donor animal.  The process involves taking an egg cell and removing its nucleus and its genetic material.  Then, an adult donor cell is transferred into the egg.  The “reconstructed egg” is treated with chemicals or electric currents to stimulate cell division.  Once the embryo reaches a certain stage, it is transferred to the uterus of a host animal.

Why Use Cloning?

     The original reason for cloning research was to explore methods of producing medicines and to conduct scientific research.  According to the Human Genome Project, researchers have been able to transfer human genes into sheep and cows so that they can produce similarly useful proteins in their milk.  In addition, the hope is to produce human antibodies against infectious diseases, including cancer.  Scientists are working on genetically modified pigs from which organs suitable for human transplant could be harvested.

     Other uses for cloning are also being investigated.  Clones of high-producing dairy cows or exceptional meat cattle could be developed to create herds of “super animals,” resulting in more milk and meat, and an animal resistant to disease.

Cloning Safety

     Studies to determine the safety of food from cloned animals have been conducted worldwide.  The Japanese have been in the forefront of cloned meat studies.  Scientists from the Operation of Urgent Research for Utilization of Clone Technology subjected meat from cloned cattle to a battery of tests. They compared its chemical composition to samples of regular beef.  They analyzed its amino and fatty acids, subjected pieces to simulated gastric and intestinal juices to measure digestibility, and fed the meat to rats for 14 weeks while tracking their motor activity, reflexes, grip strength, and other characteristics.  The report concluded that there were “no significant biological differences” between natural and cloned beef.

     In direct contrast to these studies, many health advocacy groups and scientific organizations have voiced concerns over the health and welfare of both the host and cloned animal, and the safety of cloned food.

     According to the Center for Food Safety, a nonprofit public interest and environmental advocacy organization, studies have shown that abnormalities and defects exist in cloned animals that could pose food safety risks.  These studies also demonstrated that cloned livestock may not be useful for breeding.

     For example, a common abnormality in clones, causing stillborn or early death or death of the mother, occurs only once in 7500 instances in normal pregnancies, compared to more than 42% of cloned cows’ pregnancies. Furthermore, more than 90% of cloning attempts fail to produce viable offspring; cloned animals tend to have more compromised immune function and higher rates of infection, tumor growth, and other disorders.  One third of the cloned calves born alive have died young and many of them were abnormally large.  A study at Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts, reported that in analyzing more than 10,000 liver and placenta cells of cloned mice, they discovered that about 4% of genes function abnormally.

     The birth of Dolly, the first cloned sheep, was widely publicized by the scientific community.  While most sheep live to age 11 or 12, Dolly was euthanized at age 6, suffering from arthritis and sheep pulmonary adenomatosis, a virus-induced lung tumor. Leading scientists speculate that Dolly aged so quickly because her DNA donor was a 6-year-old sheep. 

     According to a report by the Union of Concerned Scientists, “Most attempted clones are grossly defective and are lost early in development.  Defects among cloned animals include overly large fetuses, placental disorders, and inflammation of the brain and spinal cord.  Although defects occur at a higher rate among cloned animals than with other assisted reproductive technologies, the FDA dismissed animal health concerns because the defects are not unique to cloning.”

     “The fact that normal animals have already been bred intensively to increase milk and meat production calls into question the potential value of cloning animals,” said Dr. Margaret Mellon, Director of UCS’s Food and Environment Program.

     The Center for Food Safety recently issued this statement: “ FDA’s action flies in the face of widespread scientific concerns about risks of food from clones, and ignores the animal cruelty and troubling ethical concerns that the cloning process brings.  What’s worse, FDA indicates that it will not require labeling on cloned food, so consumers have no way to avoid these experimental foods.”

How to Avoid Cloned Food

     Public opinion against cloned food may soon lead to voluntary use of “clone-free” labels on food, much like the “dolphin-safe” labels seen on cans of tuna. 

     The safest way to avoid cloned food is to look for and buy organic meat, eggs, and milk.  Organic farming methods do not allow for cloning or for the use of other potentially dangerous practices, such as the use of growth hormones, antibiotics, or highly processed grains and feed.

     You may also contact the FDA and your representatives in Washington to voice your concerns on this issue.

     Stonewall Farm is proud to be a certified organic dairy.  In addition, our vegetables are grown organically as well.  We support local farmers and promote sustainable farming practices.  If you would like to know more about what we do to maintain our organic status, please contact Laurie Donohue at (603) 357-7278.