Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
into the food chain prompted an FDA investigation, the study
concluded that there was nothing wrong with cloning livestock
(Rudenko et al., 2007).
Livestock cloning is also being increasingly considered from the
point of view of food security. A report published in 2007 suggested
that while cloned animals were unlikely to enter the food chain
directly, that meat and other products from their offspring would
most likely enter the food chain before 2010 (Suk et al., 2007). This
report also identified regulatory restrictions and the availability of
alternative breeding programmes as two of the barriers to
commercialization (Suk et al., 2007). Yet they argued that there is
potential for the positives of cloned animal products to overcome
these barriers (Suk et al., 2007). The main factors operating in
favour of products from cloned animals are that they are thought to
be potentially cheaper and more environmentally friendly to produce
than via more traditional farming practices (Suk et al., 2007).
2.4.1 Foodsecurityandstemcelltechnologies
In 2008 the US FDA announced that the products from cloned
animals are no less safe to eat than any other animal products (FDA
News Release, 2008/9). This announcement represented the
culmination of an investigation into food safety issues around the use
of cloning technologies in agriculture initiated a year earlier. The
findings of the FDA investigation were specifically limited to cattle,
swine and goats, with the FDA citing a lack of evidence of the effects
for other species like sheep as one reason for the report being limited
to specific species only (FDA News Release, 2008/9). Accompanying
the announcement that the products of some species of cloned
animals would be safe to eat were a risk assessment, a risk management
plan and guidance for industry (FDA News Release, 2008/9).
In 2001 the FDA asked companies to voluntarily refrain for
selling cloned animal products of any kind until more could be
established about any risks to food safety (FDA Veterinarian
Newsletter, 2001). The Risk Assessment ultimately found that any
feed for animals made from clones or cloned products posed no threat.
