In response to recent media articles of milk from the offspring of cloned bovines being sold in the UK, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) states that meat and products from such animals and their offspring would need to be authorized before being placed on the market. All novel foods need authorization.
The FSA adds that, according to current evidence, “there are no food safety concerns surrounding consumption of products from healthy clones or their offspring.”
A 2008 European Food Safety Authority stated:
No clear evidence has emerged to suggest any differences between food products from clones or their offspring, in terms of food safety, compared to products from conventionally bred animals. But we must acknowledge that the evidence base, while growing and showing consistent findings, is still small.
The FSA says that food business operators are compelled to make sure that whatever food they place on the market complies with current laws. The FSA, as the UK authority for accepting novel food applications, has not received any approval submissions regarding meats and products from cloned animals and their offspring, and has given no authorizations.
The Agency stresses that any reports of unauthorized food entering the UK food chain will be investigated.
A novel food is a food or food ingredient that does not have a significant history of consumption within the European Union before 15 May 1997. Before any new food product can be introduced on the European market it must be rigorously assessed for safety. In the UK, the assessment of novel foods is carried out by the Advisory Committee for Novel Food and Processes, an independent committee of scientists appointed by the Food Standards Agency.
Source: Food Standards Agency (FSA), UK
Written by Christian Nordqvist