Government of Canada Pauses Deregulation of Food From Cloned Animals — Public Demands Labelling and Transparency
Health Canada has paused its proposal to remove regulation from meat and milk derived from cloned cattle and swine, following strong public concern and calls for mandatory labelling.
This pause is an important opening — and Canadians must keep up the pressure.
Why This Matters
Food from cloned animals remains a novel food in Canada today. That means no cloned meat or milk is currently approved, and no products from cloned animals are on the market. But Health Canada’s paused proposal would have ended government oversight entirely for cloned cattle and swine and their offspring.
This mirrors the government’s recent move to remove oversight from most gene-edited foods, significantly weakening safety review and public transparency.
Now is the time to demand full transparency, mandatory labelling, and regulatory oversight for all food produced using cloning or genetic engineering (GE/GM).
What Is Animal Cloning?
Cloning is not the same as genetic engineering, but it can be used within the genetic engineering process.
-
Animal cloning creates a genetically identical copy of an existing animal.
-
The most common technique is somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) — replacing the nucleus of an egg with the nucleus of a body cell, then implanting the embryo in a surrogate mother.
-
Cloning is used to replicate animals with “desirable” traits, but the process is far from precise or predictable.
The first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, was born in 1996 — after 276 attempts.
Health Canada’s Proposal (Now Paused)
Health Canada had announced that:
-
Foods from SCNT-cloned cattle and swine should be treated the same as foods from traditionally bred animals.
-
Therefore, these foods would no longer require pre-market notification or safety assessment.
-
Cloned goats, sheep, and other animals would still be assessed as novel foods.
The federal government said it paused the update after “significant input” from both consumers and industry.
Until further notice, cloned cattle and swine products remain regulated.
Risks and Unknowns
Health Canada acknowledges serious concerns:
“There are problems associated with SCNT animal cloning, including lower rates of reproductive success, altered birth weights and higher organ failure rates… The origins and mechanisms underlying these problems are not completely understood.”
These abnormalities raise legitimate unanswered questions about:
-
animal welfare
-
hidden biological changes in meat or milk
-
long-term effects that may not be detectable through superficial testing
Removing regulation — especially when scientific understanding is incomplete — is a risk Canadians never agreed to.
A Pattern: Deregulating Gene-Edited Foods
The pause comes after Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) removed pre-market regulation from:
-
most gene-edited foods
-
most gene-edited seeds
-
gene-edited livestock feed
This means:
-
Companies can release gene-edited organisms without government safety assessments
-
Companies are not required to inform the government or the public
-
The system now relies on “voluntary transparency” from industry
This lack of oversight strips Canadians of choice, undermines food system integrity, and threatens environmental safety.
Now Is the Time to Push Back
This pause shows that public pressure works. Canadians must continue demanding:
-
Mandatory regulation for cloned animals and ALL genetically engineered foods
-
Mandatory labelling so consumers can choose
-
Government-led safety assessments, not company self-policing
-
Full public transparency — no more voluntary systems
Take Action: Tell Health Canada and Your MP
Email Title:
“Regulate and Label Cloned Meat and Gene-Edited Foods”
Tell them:
-
You oppose removing regulation from cloned animals
-
You want mandatory labelling for all cloned and gene-edited foods
-
You want government safety assessments for all genetically engineered products
-
Voluntary transparency is not acceptable
Send your email to: [email protected]
Find your MP here
Take Action: No Regulatory Exemptions
Sign up for action alerts from the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network (CBAN).
The federal government has eliminated pre-market regulation for many gene-edited foods and seeds. Companies can already release these genetically engineered products with no safety review and no public notification.
Use CBAN’s letter action in the green box on this page to email the Ministers of Health and Agriculture, and the opposition critics.
Summary: Why Oversight Matters
-
Many gene-edited foods can now enter the market without government knowledge
-
Developers can assess the safety of their own products
-
The government is relying on voluntary transparency from corporations
-
This reduces safety, hides products from farmers and consumers, and erases informed choice
Regulation must be reinstated. Labelling must be mandatory. Canadians deserve transparency — not blind trust.
Sign Rebel News’ Petition: Tell Health Canada: No cloned meat!
Choose organic when possible… Get to know your local farmers and ask questions. You have the right to know what you’re eating and feeding your family.
*******************************************************************************************************************