"Cloned Meat: Some Kind Of Gag?"

Agricultural biotechnology is China's answer to "Where's the beef?" as farmers lose the battle to provide enough meat for the growing Chinese middle class.

The world's biggest animal cloning factory, located in the port city of Tianjin, will open this year.

In order to meet the market demand for beef, the center will begin by cranking out 100,000 cattle embryos a year, eventually increasing that to one million, along with other livestock.

The  $31 million facility is a joint-venture between Chinese biotechnology firm Boyalife and Sooam Biotech, a South Korean research company.

Social media is gagging over the idea of eating cloned meat, especially from a country known for its food-safety scandals.

"Is this meat going to be sold in South Korea or China?" asked one commenter. "If in China, please make sure the leaders eat it first."

Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has ruled that food from cloned animals is safe to eat, the European Parliament banned the practice, citing animal welfare concerns.

Scientists in China have been cloning animals since 2000, but until now it has been limited to scientific research.

While agricultural biotechnology could remedy the world's food security issues, it could also prove to be a multi-million dollar commercial flop.

It all depends on how the public reacts to eating meat "cooked-up" by scientists.

A wise man once said: "The world food production system today faces critical constraints. Not just one or two, but a whole constellation of them." --Julian Cribb, Science Alert

"For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" -- Romans 14:17.

News:

• Reuters: S.Carolina tries to block transgender access to bathrooms that don't match their birth sex.
• FNC: ISIS kidnaps more than 300 workers outside of Damascus.
• The Times of Israel: Iran announces plan to produce explosives used in missile warheads.