Cloning is a serious concern. The process involves scientific procedures that can cause pain, suffering and distress to the animals. Furthermore, fewer than five per cent of cloned embryos usually survive to birth. Where animals are born alive, they often have breathing problems, tumours, liver defects or other abnormalities, and have a reduced lifespan.
The cloning process usually involves removing the genetic information, known as DNA, from a cell taken from one animal, and placing this into an unfertilised egg that has had its own DNA removed. This egg is then artificially stimulated to start developing into an embryo and placed into a surrogate mother, who will eventually give birth to it.
Cloning techniques are used to try and produce exact ‘copies’ of a particular animal (which might still be alive, or may have already died). The use of cloning technology is often justified by statements that the research could lead to cheaper methods of producing medical treatments and food products.
Cloning techniques are also used to create ‘copies’ of pet dogs and cats, particular farm animals (e.g. prizewinning bulls), successful sport horses (e.g. used in show jumping), bulls used in bullfighting and endangered or even extinct species (e.g. woolly mammoths). The Society believes these purposes are completely unacceptable. Given that the cloning process involves subjecting animals to painful and distressing procedures, we do not believe there is any justification for cloning animals for such purposes.
Cloning for food
The RSPCA is totally opposed to cloning for food production on animal welfare and ethical grounds. Cloning has huge potential to cause unnecessary pain, suffering and distress which cannot be justified by purely commercial benefits. Cloning is inefficient, wastes animals' lives and causes animal suffering and distress at all stages of the process. Farm animals are already seen by some as commodities rather than sentient beings and cloning compounds this view, resulting in less concern for animal welfare and less willingness to address welfare issues. The routine use of cloning could greatly reduce genetic diversity within livestock populations, increasing the chances of whole herds being wiped out by disease to which they would all be equally susceptible.
The development of animal cloning as a method of food production is being pursued without public awareness and in spite of well-documented public concerns relating to the use of biotechnology in food production (e.g. GM foods). The RSPCA believes this is unacceptable.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) produced a Scientific Opinion in 2008, the conclusions of which are still relevant, which states that cloning can seriously compromise the welfare of the animals involved in the process. These problems include increases in abnormal or difficult births for the surrogate dams.
At the end of March, conciliation talks between the European Council and European Parliament failed. This means that the legislation will not be passed as it had gone past the time limit for approval. The RSPCA is extremely disappointed and will be working with Eurogroup for Animal Welfare to see where we go from here.