The Irish Holstein Friesian Association (IHFA) issued a notice to farmers all over Ireland on Thursday making them aware they won't pedigree-register animals that are created as a result of cloning.

Animal cloning is a form of animal reproduction that does not require the union of a sperm and an egg.

The most common animal cloning technique is referred to as somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), where the nucleus of an immature egg cell is replaced with that of a cell from a body part such as an ear, leg, nose, etc.

This allows breeders to recreate special individuals, whether it be top producers or animals lost too early due to injury, etc.

When contacted by the Irish Farmers Journal, the IHFA said it currently has no members with clones, but that it needed to make breeders aware of its stance.

Background

Rulings have been made outside the EU that permits, under license, the commercial cloning of agricultural animals.

A similar ruling has not yet been made in Europe and food from cloned animals or their offspring is not on sale in Ireland or anywhere in the EU at present.

Essentially, cloning is prohibited in the EU, but there is confusion over who is responsible for ensuring that the requirement to label separately the food from cloned progeny is adhered to - for instance, imported embryos or AI straws with a cloned male or female ancestor.

The IHFA is concerned over whether or not to register such progeny.

To make farmers aware of this, the IHFA issued a text to all breeders regarding the registration of clones.

The text stated: “IHFA board are seeking clarity from the Department of Agriculture on importation of clones and their progeny. In the meantime, animals resulting from such importations will not be accepted for registration.”

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