Cloning farm animals raises questions about how food is produced, animal welfare, and consumer choice. The old news story on this page treated a draft US decision as a final approval and assumed the food was unsafe. The relevant primary source is the US Food and Drug Administration's completed risk assessment, published in 2008.
What did the assessment conclude?
After examining animal-health and food-composition data, the FDA concluded that meat and milk from healthy cattle, pig, and goat clones, and food from their offspring, are as safe as comparable conventional food. The agency's animal cloning overview and linked risk assessment explain the scope of that conclusion. A clone is an animal produced through a reproductive technique; it is not automatically a genetically engineered food.
The assessment also identified animal-welfare problems in the cloning process. Surrogate mothers carrying clone pregnancies and very young clones, especially in cattle, can face more adverse outcomes. The FDA discusses those concerns in its risk management plan. Food safety for the consumer and welfare for the animals are separate questions, and people can reasonably care about both.
What can a food shopper choose?
Someone who prefers food produced without cloning can ask a farm or food supplier about its breeding practices and choose producers that match their values. A vegetarian or plant-focused diet avoids the issue for meat but still calls for ordinary attention to food quality. The evidence does not support saying cloned meat is poisonous. It does support asking for clear information about production methods and how animals are treated.
