The European Commission is to ban meat from cloned animals, but has stopped short of imposing restrictions on produce from the offspring of such animals.
European Union Health Commissioner Tonio Borg on Wednesday said the use of cloning for farm animals and the importation of cloned animals will be banned.
He said the measures are intended to address animal welfare and other ethical concerns.
However, no proposal has been made for labelling produce such as meat or milk that comes from the offspring of cloned animals.
The only country cloning animals as a food source within the European Union is Denmark.
While cloned meat is not often eaten because of its high price, the embryos and semen of such animals are exported and widely used.
A requirement to label such produce would potentially affect trade negtioations with Europe, because countries such as the United States, Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay all farm the offspring of clones.
