# Would you mind eating cloned meat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 9, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816 "2008-09-09T18:29:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![unspun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b9bd4f/32.png) [@unspun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/unspun)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/1 "2008-09-09T18:29:04Z")
Don’t know if maybe this has already been covered here after the initial FDA decision, but I came across this article: > **[Are We Eating Cloned Meat?](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/are-we-eating-cloned-meat/)** > > The FDA approved cloned meat as safe for consumption. Has any hit the grocery store shelves yet? I find it strange that given the U.S. government’s take on human cloning, that the FDA gives the green light for people to eat cloned animal meat? Realistically, would cloning meat save that much money for meat-producers to even make it viable? ---
**Author:** ![Birdmonster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/71e660/32.png) [@Birdmonster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Birdmonster)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/2 "2008-09-09T18:36:29Z")
I’m sure I’ve eaten and will eat much worse than cloned meat. Like, say, KFC. Or Taco Bell. I’m building up my body’s unnatural defenses. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/3 "2008-09-09T18:37:59Z")
> [@unspun](#): > > Don’t know if maybe this has already been covered here after the initial FDA decision, but I came across this article: > [Are We Eating Cloned Meat? | Scientific American](http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=are-we-eating-cloned-meat) > > I find it strange that given the U.S. government’s take on human cloning, that the FDA gives the green light for people to eat cloned animal meat? > > Realistically, would cloning meat save that much money for meat-producers to even make it viable? I think the idea is that you could clone high value animals with good genetics and implant them in host mothers. That way you get 10,000 copies of the _4H milk cow of the century_ instead of just one. Also the government doesn’t want human cloning because the religious think god will explode or something. More likely they’re afraid that when cloned babies are normal and healthy, people will take it as evidence that the soul and god don’t exist. ---
**Author:** ![erislover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/71e660/32.png) [@erislover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erislover)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/4 "2008-09-09T18:41:30Z")
> [@unspun](#): > > Would you mind eating cloned meat? No. > [@](#): > > Realistically, would cloning meat save that much money for meat-producers to even make it viable? Maybe. But I’d imagine risks of a single disease wiping out a much larger proportion of animals are larger. ---
**Author:** ![Birdmonster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/71e660/32.png) [@Birdmonster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Birdmonster)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/5 "2008-09-09T18:41:48Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > I think the idea is that you could clone high value animals with good genetics and implant them in host mothers. That way you get 10,000 copies of the _4H milk cow of the century_ instead of just one. > > Also the government doesn’t want human cloning because the religious think god will explode or something. More likely they’re afraid that when cloned babies are normal and healthy, people will take it as evidence that the soul and god don’t exist. The good about cloning: the 10,000 copies of supercow or, say, every edible strain of apple (they don’t grow true to seed). The bad: lack of natural selection and mutations that could bring something better. Plus, if that supercow is prone to a certain disease, then all those supercows die the same way. Like a supercow potato famine, which is a great band name, now that I see it. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/6 "2008-09-09T18:52:29Z")
Would I mind eating cloned meat? Would you mind eating the meat from the second of a pair of twin steers? ---
**Author:** ![vison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/e47774/32.png) [@vison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vison)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/7 "2008-09-09T18:55:58Z")
> [@Birdmonster](#): > > The good about cloning: the 10,000 copies of supercow or, say, every edible strain of apple (they don’t grow true to seed). > > The bad: lack of natural selection and mutations that could bring something better. Plus, if that supercow is prone to a certain disease, then all those supercows die the same way. Like a supercow potato famine, which is a great band name, now that I see it. Supercow Potato Famine! Wow. Yes. A great band name. I like to imagine what their first hit would be. Thanks for the laff. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/8 "2008-09-09T18:56:26Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > Would I mind eating cloned meat? > > Would you mind eating the meat from the second of a pair of twin steers? Of course not. It tastes twice as good. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/9 "2008-09-09T19:05:59Z")
The don’t see why not as long as the taste is the same. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/10 "2008-09-09T19:12:26Z")
mmm… cloney dogs ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/11 "2008-09-09T19:19:04Z")
Call me when they can grow meat in a lab. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/12 "2008-09-09T19:20:18Z")
We’re already eating [cloned bananas](http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/07/0726_wirebanana.html). I can’t see why cloned animals would be more of a problem. But **erislover** ’s and **Birdmonster** ’s comments about the vulnerability of all cloned animals to the same disease are well taken, since [that fate seems to be overtaking the banana](http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/02/0033211). ---
**Author:** ![Burton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Burton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burton)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/13 "2008-09-09T19:21:04Z")
Yes I would. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/14 "2008-09-09T19:25:32Z")
Is there a standard suite of tests done on meat to verify if it’s safe? Like, for instance, if a new type of hybrid animal is bred in the old-fashioned way? Unless I hear a good reason why these tests are inadequate against a cloned animal, I see no reason to worry about it. ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/15 "2008-09-09T20:36:52Z")
This is all very alduous huxley for me…but I am sure I’ve eaten cloned things before. It doesn’t matter much to me whether it’s a cloned tomato or a cloned Angus - it’s still cloning a sentient being either way. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/16 "2008-09-09T20:43:34Z")
> [@Phlosphr](#): > > This is all very alduous huxley for me…but I am sure I’ve eaten cloned things before. It doesn’t matter much to me whether it’s a cloned tomato or a cloned Angus - it’s still cloning a sentient being either way. You’ve been eating sentient tomatoes? ---
**Author:** ![Kid\_A\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Kid\_A\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kid_A_1)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/17 "2008-09-09T20:46:25Z")
No. I mean Bald Eagle or Koala meat might be very tasty and healthy and could completely change our diets. Bring on the cloned endangered animals for tasting. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/18 "2008-09-09T20:51:17Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > You’ve been eating sentient tomatoes? Now, _there’s_ an image; "_Help me ! Help me !_ \* MUNCH \* And yes, I’d eat cloned meat. As said, twins are just natural clones and we eat twin animals all the time. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/19 "2008-09-09T20:53:49Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > You’ve been eating sentient tomatoes? [The Attack of the Killer Tomatoes](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080391/) was really a documentary. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816/20 "2008-09-09T20:57:41Z")
> [@unspun](#): > > I find it strange that given the U.S. government’s take on human cloning, that the FDA gives the green light for people to eat cloned animal meat? You do? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-mind-eating-cloned-meat/462816.md?page=2)