Cloning of livestock is back in the news and, depending on how you interpret the developments, the science could either be a boon for food safety, or a bust for consumer confidence.

Last week the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released some documents indicating that food from cloned animals or their offspring is indistinguishable from traditionally bred animals and would be safe for human consumption.

That led to an Associated Press story about whether or not there would be calls for some food companies to label their products as clone-free.

Given the expense that would be involved with cloning animals it is unlikely that beef producers, dairies or hog producers would turn to cloning when there are far less costly methods to produce offspring. It just wouldn’t be practical.