Americans, Europeans differ on cloning

MANHATTAN, Kan., June 21 (UPI) -- Americans may be more accepting of consuming cloned animal products than Europeans, a researcher on consumer attitudes toward food safety says.

Sean Fox, Kansas State University professor of agricultural economics, conducted a survey among students exploring consumer attitudes on cloned animals.

"We were interested in finding out how different groups of consumers react to the possibility of consuming products that were derived from cloned animals," Fox said in a KSU release Tuesday. "We were also interested in how those reactions differed between countries, particularly in the United States and Europe."

The survey asked student participants in the United States, Ireland and France about their likelihood of buying and eating meat and other products from cloned animals.

Americans were found to be more accepting of cloned products than Europeans, who were concerned about cloning from an ethical and moral perspective while the American students cited food safety concerns.

"Results suggest that a significant number of people do have concerns about cloning from an ethical and moral perspective," Fox said. "That will be very relevant if these products come to market and are labeled as such, because we would expect to see a significant number of people avoiding them."

The survey also found that women were less likely to purchase cloned products while people familiar with science were more accepting of cloned products.