Clone-burger, anyone?

US Food and Drug Administration has approved the sale of cloned meat. Rania Habib finds out what people in Abu Dhabi think of it.

As if we don't ingest enough weird stuff on a daily basis, cloned meat has been added to our hormonally-modified and preservative-laden diets.

Media the world over reported this week that the US Food and Drug Administration has finally approved the selling of cloned meat in America, and that we could be serving clone-burgers within the next year.

Yummy. The announcement comes after a four-year analysis which concluded that cloned animals and their offspring would be as safe to eat as conventionally bred animals.

While scientific results may calm your qualms and fears about cloned meat, the concept of cloning remains controversial the world over.

We've heard a lot about cloning during the past few years and while it roused various emotions, it remained at a safe scientific distance from our lives.

But now, cloning has left the scientific realm and could be available right in the comfort of your dinner plate, proving to be too close for comfort for some.

We thought the world was starting to make sense again when the whole organic trend resurfaced.

Everyone from Hollywood stars to average Joes and Janes jumped on to the healthy organic bandwagon, not minding spending a little more on their food as long as they ate normally processed food.

Today, the idea of cloned meat comes as the antithesis to organic food and is sure to leave people curious, unsure, or just appalled.

We went looking for meat-buyers in the capital and solicited their opinions. Would they buy cloned meat if it became available in the UAE?

Alessandra Raciti
"At the moment I wouldn't buy cloned meat because I don't know enough about it. Maybe it's safe, but for the time being I prefer to go for normal meat. There might be ethical reasons too, but primarily it is a safety reason.

It's one of those things, if it's taken to the extreme it could be a bad thing ethically, but if it just increases quality and availability of meat, it could be a good thing. As I said earlier, I don't know enough about cloned meat, but I wouldn't say a complete no to it."

Moneer Habboush, Manager of Abela Butchers
"If the people buy cloned meat, then there is no problem. So it all depends on whether the customers accept or like it. But it has to be approved by the municipality and the Ministry of Health; it is under their control of course, so we need their approval. If people buy something, then we don't mind selling it."

Maysoon Arbeed
"Of course I'm against it. I wouldn't buy cloned meat for ethical reasons. I'm against cloning in general because it is an unnatural thing. I just like natural stuff, and I'm against anything that's artificial."

Ron Hollett
"I think there is an education process you need to go through to actually know what cloned meat is. Organic food is accepted, but cloned meat just sounds like Dolly the sheep, so there should be an education factor attached to it.

It's not a definite no for me, it's curiosity. I'd like to know more about it. I don't know that the prices are better since organic is more expensive. But it would be interesting to know what the advantages of cloned meat are."