PRESS RELEASE
6 February 2014
European Union must protect consumers and animals
and ban food from cloning
Bureau Members
President:
Pavel Poc MEP
Vice-Presidents:
Kriton Arsenis MEP
Jacqueline Foster MEP
Nadja Hirsch MEP
Sidonia Jedrzejewka MEP
Jörg Leichtfried MEP
Kartika Liotard MEP
Cristiana Muscardini MEP
Sirpa Pietikäinen MEP
Raül Romeva i Rueda MEP
Anna Rosbach MEP
Daciana Sârbu MEP
Michèle Striffler MEP
Andrea Zanoni MEP
Honorary Presidents
Elisabeth Jeggle MEP
Marit Paulsen MEP
Carl Schlyter MEP
Janusz Wojciechowski MEP
Honorary Secretary:
David Martin MEP
Secretariat:
Eurogroup for Animals
6, rue des Patriotes
B- 1000 Brussels
T: +32-2 740 08 20
F: +32- 2 740 08 29
Members of the European Parliamentary Intergroup meeting in Strasbourg today
listened to developments in the field of cloning at a legislative level and re-iterated
their demand for a full ban to prevent the sale and import of food from cloned
animals and their offspring respecting the wishes of Europe’s citizens and to
introduce legislation this year that will actively stop cloning taking place in the
European Union.
Cloning, a technique to reproduce identical animals is very controversial and
opposed on ethical, animal welfare and health grounds, due to the many animals
that die in the process and the suffering it causes during pregnancy and birth.
Scientists agree that the health and welfare of a significant proportion of cloned
animals is seriously affected and mortality is considerably higher than with sexually
reproduced animals.
Speaking during the meeting Kartika Liotard MEP, a previous Rapporteur on the
Cloning dossier stated “Products from clones and the descendants of clones,
including imports from third countries, should be banned in the EU, or at the very
least have a mandatory label. The European Parliament is united on this issue and
will continue its efforts to uphold the highest standards of animal welfare and
make sure consumers are informed to the fullest extent.
Commenting on the new proposals released by the European Commission at the
end of 2013 she added: “The new Commission proposals on cloning do not meet
these two goals and are therefore totally unacceptable. The Commission should be
guided by democratic principles and should incorporate demands from European
citizens and their representatives; the Commission must not be a pawn of profithungry foreign biotech companies."
Also speaking at today’s meeting Dr Kirsty Reid of Eurogroup for Animals clearly
stated “Eurogroup is concerned over the weak proposals of the Commission, which
would not lead to an end of the cloning process, with animal health and welfare
concerns remaining”
She added: “The proposals only introduce a provisional ban on cloning for food
and on the placing on the market of animal clones, and the emphasis is placed on
Member states which must introduce legislation to prohibit the cloning of animals
and the placing on the market of animal clones. As far as Eurogroup is concerned
the proposals do not go far enough. As they do not take into account the offspring
and food products from animal clones. These are the real products which will
reach the EU market.”
info@eurogroupforanimals.org
www.animalwelfareintergroup.eu
Established in 1983
- ENDS For more information, contact:
Martyn Griffiths, executive officer communications,
Email: m.griffiths@eurogroupforanimals.org
Tel: +32 2 740 08 23
Mobile +32 479 97 21 56