January 8, 2009
Cloned beef, pork to debut in Japan's markets this year
Japan will start to commercially sell cloned beef and pork this year as the government is to declare that cloned beef and pork made from cloned eggs or body cells are safe.
The Japanese Food Safety Commission experts were quoted as saying that quality of meat and ingredients of milk from cloned cows and pigs are just as safe as those of normal meat. The commission will confirm its decision this year and report it to the Health, Welfare and Labour Ministry and submit the findings to the Cabinet for final approval.
Previously, safety of cloned meat has been questioned. The US Food and Drug Administration and the European Food Safety Authority announced last year that meat and milk products made from cloned animals are safe. But sales did not push through in the US due to ethical and religious reasons.
