Shake-up in Canada's mutant meat rollout fuels US outrage

"Health Canada announced Wednesday that it has 'indefinitely paused' the move after receiving significant input from both consumers and industry about the implications of the proposed policy change. Under the original plan, officials would have scrapped a 22-year-old rule that classifies cloned meat as a 'novel food,' effectively removing pre-market safety assessments and allowing these products to be sold without disclosure. 'Until the policy is updated, foods made from cloned cattle and swine will remain subject to the novel food assessment,' Health Canada said."

"But south of the border, Americans are expressing frustration because cloned meat continues to circulate in the US food system, also without labels. Americans argued they deserve to know where their meat is coming from, with others slamming the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for allowing cloned products onto shelves, even calling the agency 'a fraud.' Many Americans oppose cloned meat due to concerns about animal welfare, food safety and ethical or religious objections."

"Opponents have also highlighted the high rates of suffering in the animals, including health problems and miscarriages, and the risk of antibiotics or hormones entering the food supply. Ethical objections often include a general unease with the technology and fears that it could lead to human cloning. Even more, cloned meat is not allowed for food production in Europe due to a ban on the cloning of farm animals and the sale of products derived from them."

Health Canada indefinitely paused a policy change that would have removed a 22-year-old rule classifying cloned meat as a novel food, preserving pre-market safety assessments and disclosure requirements. Until any policy update, foods from cloned cattle and swine remain subject to novel food assessment, and there are currently no approved cloned-product foods in Canada. Many Canadians welcomed the reversal over labeling and trust concerns. In the United States, cloned meat circulates without labels, prompting criticism of the FDA. Opponents cite animal welfare, health risks from antibiotics or hormones, ethical and religious objections, and European bans on cloned-animal products.

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