Agro-Biotechnology: - The Greens | European Free Alliance

Framing legislation | Cloned farm animals - a ‚killing application‘? | 39
6.2.2.1 Scientific reasons for an import ban
Legislation in this sphere deals with import regulations and free movement
of goods and is therefore of a complex nature. But there are some legitimate
reasons to prohibit the import of genetic material derived from cloned farm
animals and their offspring. The arguments can be deduced from mechanisms
of genetics and epigenetics and the effects observed in cloned animals. As explained,
cloned animals show a broad variation of health problems which can
include the immune system. Potential risks concern animal and human health.
The possibility of transmitting agents posing risks to human health is discussed
by EFSA (2008a). Since no definitive causes for adverse health impacts
are known, it is difficult to define a reliable risk assessment for the safety of
genetic material from cloned animals.
Furthermore, the risks cannot be confined to the first generation of cloned
animals. Mechanisms are known that in principle allow the transfer of epigenetic
effects and genetic defects to the next generations. RNA can for example be
transmitted via semen, as discussed by EFSA (2009). Epigenetic imprinting is
not completely deleted by the process of reprogramming during sexual reproduction
(Jablonka & Raz, 2009). Mitochondrial heteroplasmy is also found in F1
generations.
Food products derived from cloned animals will also always imply a certain
level of uncertainty emerging from the various factors that can impact the
result of SCNT. There is no history of safe use in this technology and its products.
Further risk assessment of food products derived from cloned animals
produced under certain technical procedures can hardly be transferred to
other cloned animals (and their products) because of the broad range of factors
impacting SCNT.
The WTO agreements such as the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary
and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement) and the Agreement on Technical
Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement) allow market measures, if they are based
on the precautionary principle, only to be applied for a limited period of time.
If these agreements are seen as relevant 46 , any period of time should cover at
least several full life spans of animals derived from SCNT. Furthermore concerning
technical uncertainties a much larger number of animals and derived
products needs to be tested.
The risk assessment should be performed case by case. Any change in techni-
46 The TBT Agreement does not apply to SPS measures - see Article 1(4) of the TBT Agreement. Annex
A of the SPS Agreement defines four types of SPS measures according to their purpose. If SCNT food
products are seen as (a, c, d) “pests, diseases, disease-carrying organims or disease-causing organisms”
or (b) “additives, contaminants, toxins or disease-causing organisms” the SPS Agreement would be
relevant.