Persuasive

Running Head : Against the Consumption of Cloned Animals

A Persuasive Essay against the Consumption of Cloned Animals

Abstract

The FDA has recently issued a statement declaring that meat and dairy products from cloned animals are safe for consumption . This essay argues against consumption of cloned animals despite the FDA approval on two major grounds : the unreliability of the basis of the FDA conclusion and the ethical implications of cloning for consumption

Against the Consumption of Cloned Animals

In January 2008 , the U .S . Food and Drug Administration (FDA ) has issued

its final risk assessment on cloning , declaring that meat and dairy products from cloned cows , pigs and goats , as well as their offspring are safe for consumption . However , FDA has asked the meat and dairy industry to continue its voluntary moratorium on the use of cloned products which means that products from cloned animals will not enter the market soon . This FDA ruling is paramount since it opens the doors for these products to penetrate the market

In this essay , I will argue against the consumption of meat products from cloned animals , despite the FDA ruling . My arguments will focus on two main points , which are the unreliability of the basis of the FDA ruling and the ethical issues presented by the consumption of cloned animals

Background

Cloning is the process used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells or organisms . People often confuse cloning with genetic engineering Cloning is not the same as genetic engineering , which involves altering , adding or deleting DNA cloning does not change the gene sequence (ScienceDaily , 2006 . This distinction should be made , since the FDA ruling has declared that it is safe to eat products from cloned animals , while no similar approval has been made for genetically modified organisms

The FDA ruling is good news for biotechnology companies , such as the Austin-based ViaGen who has already produced over 250 cloned cattle and pigs in preparation for what the company hopes will be a robust market in farm clones (Washingtonpost .com , 2006 . But what exactly are the implications of cloning farm animals ? Because of the costs involved clones will be used as any other elite breeding stock -- to pass on naturally-occurring , desirable traits such as disease resistance and higher quality meat to production herds (ScienceDaily , 2006

Unreliability of the FDA Ruling

The FDA has declared that the meat and milk from cloned animals are as safe as the food produced by animals conventionally spawned . However opposition to the FDA ruling argues that there is just not enough science to support FDA 's conclusion

Data Deficit

The National Academies of Sciences , in its 2002 report , admitted that "limited sample size , health and production data , and rapidly changing cloning protocols make it difficult to draw conclusions regarding the safety of milk , meat or other products from somatic cell cloned individuals (BBC New , 2002 . Somatic nuclear transfer is one of the methods used in cloning . Animals are also cloned through other methods such as embryo splitting and blastomere...