Biotechnology and Voicing Consumer Opinon

You might be interested in this group - Organic Consumers Association - http://www.organicconsumers.org. And you are right to be concerned.

1 mom found this helpful

I agree with you that the products should be labeled so as to offer consumers a choice. No question.

I actually have much more concern about genetically modified food (tomatoes with pig genes added) and irradiated foods than cloning. From a scientific perspective, gmo and irradiation seem much more potentially dangerous to the consumer than meat, milk, or corn that came from one genetic source. Cloned animals or vegetables grow naturally and are whole foods.

Yes, we should all be very concerned about cloning of animals and having the choice to feed our children "real food". The FDA should take responsibility with this possibly dangerous experiment and be sure to label all the ingredients that we are consuming. It is important to take action on the issues we are passionate about.

They gave the OK to products from clones and their offspring, so I think the protest needs to be about animals in the food chain- otherwise I am sure that they will make a loophole for so many generations removed from the cloned animal, etc. What I read was that the clones themselves are too expensive and /or valuable to use as food. I assume that wouldn't apply to dairy cows. I am all for labeling! (Especially if we can't get the practice banned)

What can be done? I think I heard milk from cloned cows was already permitted and has been sold. Where do we start?

C.

I agree with you. I wouldn't want to buy anything that I wasn't sure where it was coming from! I certainly would not feed it to my children. If you are getting a petition ready, I would gladly sign it, and I'm sure I can get some of my friends and family to sign it as well.

I am VERY concerned about this- DNA is nothing to mess around with- do you know how I can get invloved? For now I am trying to not eat any meat & dairy that is not organic- but this is challenging when we go out to eat.

I agree! We have a right to know and be aware of what we are really eating.

N.,
I try to serve as much organic food as possible in my house. I don't think you are paranoid at all. In fact, I think people put way too much faith in our FDA. If some don't care thats fine but I want to know what I am eating and feeding my family and I would never choose to purchase anything that is cloned or GMO's. I get info on this subject all the time and let my opinion be known.

Thanks for caring,
Felecia

Wow, that's crazy...........I heard about cloning but I thought it really never came to fruition where its going to be used by consumers on a regular basis. FDA approved.....without being informed......don't know about this.......don't know what the logistics of this process....is it harmful........is it the same.........don't know a thing. I always watch the news...never seen anything on this topic.......

I will have keep my feelers out there and read packaging...

Wow! That is REALLY important to know...Does this have to do with Organic beef and chicken also??? I would definetly push for something like that.
C.

I am completely with you. I assume everything I buy from Trader Joe's and Whole Foods is safe, but who knows anymore.

interested if you find any advocacy groups/more info....

Hi,

This isn't just an issue with children, for I'm scared to eat meat and dairy products as well. I was horrified upon discovering this tidbit, because who's to say if it truly is safe to eat cloned animals? Yet, if you recall the KFC scandal that took place some years ago (it was reported that KFC wasn't using real chicken but instead some synthetic form of meat), we've probably been eating cloned animals for a while and didn't know it. We can push for an FDA warning, but I think praying is the best thing one can do in this situation, for the government is aware of many things that we may never be privy to.

Absolutely demand disclosure, I'm with you and I am a registered voter. What can I do to help?

Yes, I would be very concerned about feeding my children or eating cloned anything. The research and technology for this is too new and they don't know what the side effects of this could be. And to eat it without even knowing...that's scary. Have you seen "I am Legend," I think this is a really bad idea. I mena the movie is a bit far fetched but the idea is we shouldn't be jumping the gun and exposing ourselves to unknown dangers by partaking in something I personally just don't know enough about. We should have a choice.

I refuse to buy bio-engineered food. I can't really tell you why, but it freaks me out. I know that most corn is genetically engineered and I won't buy it. I'm a personal chef, so I go out of my way to buy fresh food that has not been changed. I would definitely sign my name on legislation requiring it to be disclosed on the package.

I would also push to want to know if the meat we were eating came from a cloned animal!!!

N., It's my understanding that what was approved was to market products from the offspring of cloned animals. The idea is that the cloning is used for breeding stock. It is still not legal to sell animal products that include or are from cloned animals. Hope that helps. J.

That is disturbing to me considering that they dont know the long turn effects that it would have on our bodies. I am interested!

I'd like to have a choice. I'm already not happy about the seafood that's in the markets. I don't purchase that anymore either. None of it is from local places. (Oakland, CA)

Hi N.,

I am so with you~! Why do we need to clone beef anyway is my question. It sounds way creepy and with mad cow, it makes me wonder. We should have the right to choose. Sign me up~!
Blessings,D.

I'm with you N.. I rarely eat red meat, but when I do, I only buy from Whole Foods where they do not sell genetically altered foods. I try to speak with my pocketbook, but would support a push for required disclosures on packaging.

I am similarly concerned. They did an end run around the electorate on this one by delaying consideration of it until the previous furor had died down. I plan to email my representatives with my disagreement with this action. Maybe a drop in the bucket, but if others do as well, it can be effective. I encourage others to do so as well.

Also, I highly recommend reading Michael Pollan's last two books, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto ( http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9781594201455-0 )and The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals ( http://www.powells.com/biblio/2-9781594200823-4 ) for a wonderfully written look into our food systems in this country, and prescriptions for what we can actionably do. An educated electorate is a formidable one!

I'm assuming that certified organic meat can't be cloned. Am I right?

This is completely scary and there is absolutely NO WAY i feel comfortable feeding my family CLONED BEEF!!! This is another example of the FDA not looking at the long term results before letting something on the market. I fear huge detrimental affects from cloned meat. Luckily, we have a local organic grass fed beef farm. They are against cloning. They ship nationwide. Lazy69ranch.com This is my answer so far! Cut out the corporatations from your life as much as possible. Look locally for organic produce at farmer's markets, natural food stores, etc. Or in some cases, land/space permitting, we all need to learn self sustainability and raise our own food. We may be surprised one day not too far from now, when local supermarkets are a thing of the past!

L. Oliveira
No. California
Mother of four!!

Hi N.,
Yes, I agree with you. I too was extremely concerned about that. They have no way to know if something weird will be in the meat from a cloned animal. I certainly don't want to feed it to my kids...

I am with you on this one. The Center for Food Safetly is spearheading activism on this issue. You might want to check out their website. Organics can't come from cloned animals, at least not yet, so go with that for this reason and so many others.

Yes, please inform us what we can do to stop or alter the guidelines for these actions. It is absolutely unfair that the FDA would allow for such non-disclosure!

I think we should all be a bit weary of all of the alterations happening to our food. There should always be full disclosure so that we consumers have a choice in what we are putting in our bodies and what we feed our children. I try to feed my child organic products as much as possible, including grass feed organic meats. I research where the food is coming from and try to make the best choices for my family in this profit driven world where the health of people seems to come second to corporations making money.

Mother of 1. Expecting a second in a few months.

YES.... I am totally against it.. You are not paranoid!!! What do we have to do?

I totally want to protest this outrageous happening to our food supply and at least want labelng and disclosure of cloned meat. What can we do??

I personally feel that all foods consumed by humans should have required disclosure for cloning, added harmones to the feed, or any other additives.

We have a right to know what we are putting in our bodies and those of our families.