Britain to probe report of clone's calf

LONDON, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The British government said it will investigate reports that a calf from a cloned cow was born on a British farm.

The reported birth, which occurred without the knowledge of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, was viewed as evidence that clone farming is occurring in Britain, Sky News said, as an effort to create supersized cows capable of producing more than eight gallons of milk a day.

The report said the calf was from a clone and that her mother was created in the United States using cells from the ear of a champion dairy Holstein, Sky News said.

DEFRA, which collects information about cloned embryos from breed societies, said that it was unaware of the calf's existence. A spokeswoman said the department would look into the matter.