US dairy sector to continue rejecting milk from cloned animals

 

 

US dairy companies are adhering to a voluntary pledge to keep milk and meat from cloned livestock off the market, despite the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declaring the products to be safe for consumption in January 2008.

 

Alongside the FDA announcement was an USDA note asking companies to continue following the 2001 optional ban in order to give the market time to adapt to the possibility of cloned meat entering the market.

 

However, the market has no signs of giving in and the voluntary ban may be there to stay.

 

Joan Behr of Foremost Farms, a dairy cooperative, said the ban is in place to reassure consumers.

 

"We want to make sure that consumers are comfortable purchasing milk and dairy products. We just don't want consumers to be concerned whether the products they're buying are safe and wholesome. I would say it's a concern about the consumer and how they perceive new technologies," said Behr.

 

Consumer confidence is a large concern as the FDA does not require labels on food products from cloned animals. A number of food companies have also refused to sell any products from clones.

 

Kraft Foods is not selling any cloned products because surveys revealed that consumers do not want anything from cloned animals, according to Basil Maglaris, the company's senior manager in corporate affairs.

 

Other companies rejecting milk from cloned cattle include Dean Foods, the country's largest dairy producer.

 

Milk from clones has to meet the pasteurisation standards and nutrition labelling requirements of conventional milk before it could be sold.

 

Still, some consumer advocacy groups such as the Centre for Food Safety said the FDA did not do enough research into the possible health risks of cloned food.

 

Behr said education on cloning would help to change the market dynamics, but that the market will drive the voluntary ban's lifeline for the moment.

 

It is projected that even with consumer acceptance, expensive and inefficient technology will hold cloned products in check for the near future.