Print“Food security remains our biggest concern. There is no other way to address the challenge than relying on technologies to transform traditional agriculture.”
Chinese scientists have successfully bred two genetically modified cloned calves in Beijing, according to a report in Global Times, a Chinese news source published in English. The calves were born recently at the Comprehensive Experimental Base of Beijing University of Agriculture, says Ni Minhong, the lead researcher on the GM cattle cloning project. The aim of the research project is to develop beef with higher protein content and eventually market the meat to consumers. Ni acknowledges that many obstacles must first be overcome, including cost, health issues, and public opinion about the safety of GM products.
Ni said that 200 cows were chosen in 2011 and implanted with embryos modified to contain adipocyte fatty acid binding protein, leading to higher levels of protein that would also improve the taste of the meat. Seven of the cows became pregnant, but two of the seven cows miscarried, Li told the Times. “These two babies were the only ones born alive,” he says.
He admitted that the program, started in 2009, has had many failures until these two live births.
The program’s aim is to improve the quality and productivity of domestically produced beef. Still, it will be a several years before the improved beef could be made available to the public. And it must first overcome public fear over the safety of GM foods and pass the scrutiny of regulators.
Meat consumption in China is growing rapidly with the expansion of its middle class. More meat consumption means more feedstock slated for livestock. Food security is a big issue in the country, which houses 22 percent of the world’s population but contains only 10 percent of the world’s arable land.
Although genetically modified crops have yet to be approved for consumption in China, the government has put a high priority on the use of biotechnology to improve agriculture. “We have 1.3 billion people to feed with limited land resource,” said Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, in a 2011 interview in the Chinese publication Seeking Truth Magazine. “Food security remains our biggest concern. There is no other way to address the challenge than relying on technologies to transform traditional agriculture, such as high-yield variety breeding and GM technology.”
August 23, 2012
http://www.burrillreport.com/article-china_clones_two_gm_calves.html
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