Health: Cloned Beef: Its Whats for Dinner?
We hit the streets to get the scoop on what Philly thinks about the possibility of eating Molly the cow for dinner … more than once
Now here’s some food for thought: On Tuesday, the Food and Drug Administration declared cloned animals to be safe for human consumption. The FDA spent six years tracking the safety of cloning, and its final decision came after much opposition.
Now here’s some food for thought: On Tuesday, the Food and Drug Administration declared cloned animals to be safe for human consumption. The FDA spent six years tracking the safety of cloning, and its final decision came after much opposition.
Many meat-eaters are still wary about eating food from a cloned source. FDA officials say there are no differences between animals and their clones, therefore the food from the clones would not need special labeling. So far, the FDA has received approximately 30,500 comments from the public, half of which have dealt with the labeling on these products. [CNN]
Here’s what some Philadelphians think about the issue of cloned cows:
“I have reservations about it since I was raised on a farm in Virginia,” says West Philadelphia resident Thelma Dillard, 77. “I try to eat food from farmers markets when I can.”
Others were not so adamant against it. “I can see both sides of it,” says South Philly resident Zach Mayer, 31. “But as long as cloning is done safely, it could be beneficial.”
UPenn student Mira Fawcett, 21, says she is not opposed to the idea, but that there would need to be additional testing before it hit supermarket shelves.
“I feel like it’s the next natural step with where we’re going with technology,” Fawcett says. “Though, I think they should test it for a long time and label it differently.”
We’re not so sure “natural,” is the best way to describe eating food products from cloned animals. What do you think of this controversial topic? Leave your comments below.
