Heard that the FDA has approved cloned meat and milk as "okay" on the news today. Yeah, sure, it won't be happening tomorrow (and probably for a while, "cloned meat" will be more expensive...I could even see a Mr. Burns-like industry developing for people who ONLY want cloned meat for some perverse reason, where a premium is charged).

But: Do Not Want. I just feel uncomfortable with the idea of consuming milk from a cloned cow or meat (what fairly little I eat) from a cloned animal.

The thing that gets me - at least on the CBS radio story - is they're not going to require labeling. Argh. I want to KNOW. I want the CHOICE.

And yeah, you're free to tell me in the comments I'm being foolish, that I shouldn't be concerned about cloned meat. For me, it's more of an "icky" reaction than something I can really pinpoint scientifically and say "this is likely to go wrong and cause problems because."

I already buy the organic milk. I suppose because the organic farmers are concerned about the environment (and claim to be concerned about animal welfare), they probably won't be using any cloned cattle. And I would hope maybe some other producers would realize that a big segment of the public is going to be displeased with this and they will only use, and label as such, from non-cloned animals.

(I do wish I could easily find organic cheese and yogurt, but when your shopping options are as limited as mine, you either take what you can get or do without. And yeah, I know, you can make your own yogurt and cheese, but I'm not prepared to set up that kind of cottage industry.)

Of course, the best solution would be to have local producers that you KNEW. But that's not really a reality for me, at least right now - if I wanted "local" eggs, I'd have to drive 40 miles one way to buy them, and for "local" beef or lamb, it's 30+ miles the other way. (Yeah, I know, beef and lamb FREEZE, but you haven't seen the state of my freezer lately).

Stuff like this irritates me - the not-labeling - because if anything, I think there's a trend in America where consumers (at least some of us) want to know MORE about where our food comes from and what's in it, not LESS.

(Oooh, I wonder about restaurants. Can you request a guarantee from a restaurant that the steak you're ordering came from an "original" cow?)

I don't know. I'm not a vegetarian although I eat plant food most of the time (I guess you'd call me a "flexitarian" with a heavy focus on milk and eggs), but this might be enough to get me to "boycott" meat unless I can be sure of what it's from.

(Random Simpsons reference: "Think smaller, more legs." In reference to Homer's guess that the Krusty Rib sandwich was made of pork.)

(Comments may close if I get too many flames for eating meat. It's my choice, I realize there are a variety of consequences to it, and I'm willing to deal with the moral/health/economic implications.)