Terry Etherton’s Blog on Hormones, Biotechnology, and Food Safety

Terry D. Etherton

Some groups still continue to spread information about animal cloning and whether food from clones is safe to enter our food system.

Groups opposed to cloning use communication tactics that are designed to scare consumers about the safety of food from cloned animals.  These attacks continue even though in 2008 the Food and Drug Administration published Animal Cloning: A Risk Assessment, a lengthy document that concluded (based on the burden of scientific evidence) meat and milk from cow, pig, and goat clones, and the offspring of any animal clones are as safe as food we eat every day.

I find it remarkably interesting that there seems to be little concern by these activist groups about the use of cloning in the wine industry (by the way, the fact is that there is no basis for any concern).  My point, however, is simple.  How come the science of cloning is attacked in animals but not when applied to grapes?

Ever been to a vineyard and looked at the grape varieties?  They are clones!!  And, many vineyard owners proudly put up signs touting the particular clone(s) that are planted in each “block” of their vineyard. Read the rest of this entry »

Chad Dechow
Associate Professor, Dairy Cattle Genetics
Department of Dairy and Animal Science
The Pennsylvania State University

If Activists, Government, and Global Business Unite

I got my first bumper sticker (for my bicycle) as a 10 year old kid showing cows at the county fair. It said “Farmers Feed You Three Times a Day” and it resonated with me because, even at that age, I understood that those who feed the rest of the world are often not held in high regard. I got some of my first exposure to those who don’t like animal agriculture at the same fair when a stranger asked me how I would like my head brushed with that those stiff bristles. Read the rest of this entry »

Harold Harpster, Professor of Animal Science
Department of Dairy & Animal Science
The Pennsylvania State University

I stop at the end of the lane to retrieve the day’s mail and folded around the usual stack of bills is my latest issue of TIME magazine. Before driving into the farm I take a quick look at the cover. What’s this? A package of bright red hamburger is center stage with a label across the package: “WARNING: This hamburger may be hazardous to your health. Why the American food system is bad for our bodies, our economy, and our environment- and what some visionaries are trying to do about it.” Immediately below the package in huge bold print are the words “ The Real Cost of Cheap Food”, by Bryan Walsh, Time’s  “Energy and Climate” writer. My immediate thought is “Here we go – some pseudo- expert who knows next to nothing about agriculture, has decided to trash our way of life once again”. I read the article right then and there and my first impression is certainly correct! Read the rest of this entry »

Terry D. Etherton

Much has been written about the “Food System” and how we should go about feeding the world.  To put “much” into context, I ran a Google search using the phrases “food systems” or food system; got 906,000 returns for the former and 759,000 returns for the latter phrase.

Why the keen interest in the food system?  One reason is that many scientists (including me) believe we need to apply science to make new discoveries in the food system that will help meet the food needs of the growing World population.  Dr. Norman Borlaug, Nobel Laureate, who passed away on September 12, 2009, and who is credited for launching the “Green Revolution” to feed the World was clear about this.  He passionately believed that science should be the most important tool to solve world hunger. Read the rest of this entry »

Terry D. Etherton

August 27 was a day of education, exploration and enlightenment for the 55 students and staff who participated in the annual New Student Industry Tour, hosted by Penn State’s Department of Dairy and Animal Science and Department of Poultry Science.

Now in its 11^th year, the tour offers incoming freshman and other students new to the campus, a unique educational opportunity to view the diversity of Pennsylvania agriculture, from the traditional to the exotic.  It has been a big “hit” since we launched the tour.

Read the rest of this entry »

Terry D. Etherton

I had a wonderful (and sweltering) time at Ag Progress Days (APD) last week.  This is an event sponsored by the College of Agricultural Sciences and attracted about 50,000 attendees over three days.

I have been asked:  what do you do out there for three days?  A lot (more about this later)!  And, the faculty and staff in the Department of Dairy and Animal Science do a great deal to put on a variety of educational and science-based programs for APD attendees. Read the rest of this entry »

A ProMED-mail post (August 2, 2009)

Hong Kong’s health authorities announced Wednesday [27 Jul 2009] that a new variant of the H3N2 seasonal influenza virus has been found in the city. The Brisbane strain has been the prevalent circulator of H3N2 in the past year, and the new variant is its direct descendent, said Thomas Tsang, controller of Hong Kong’s Center for Health Protection (CHP). “However, it has some genetic changes distinguishing it from the old Brisbane strain,” he said. He said it is normal for viruses to go through changes, adding that overseas health authorities, including those in Canada, Britain and Australia, had also found the new variant. Read the rest of this entry »

Terry D. Etherton

There is an ongoing overweight/obesity epidemic in the United States.  Estimates from the National Center for Health Statistics are that about 66% of Americans are either overweight of obese! This epidemic not only poses a health problem for overweight/obese individuals, but also represents a rapidly expanding burden on health care costs in America. Read the rest of this entry »

Jacob Werner, VMD
Assistant Professor of Veterinary Medicine and Dairy and Animal Science
Attending Veterinarian for Agricultural Animals and Wildlife
Animal Resource Program
Penn State University

A recent outbreak of equine Herpes Virus 1 (EHV-1) in Southwest Pennsylvania has prompted many questions and concerns from horse owners. The farm has been quarantined to prevent the spread of the virus.  While there is no immediate threat outside that farm, horse owners should be vigilant and practice high levels of biosecurity.  Commonly known as Rhinopneumonitis or “Rhino,”  Equine Herpes Virus (EHV) has many different types and is best known by horse owners to cause respiratory disease and abortions.  It is important to know that EHV can cause other disease states in horses.  EHV-1 found in Southwest Pennsylvania was the cause of a neurologic form of the disease. Read the rest of this entry »

On June 9, 2009, I posted a blog “The Slippery Slope Involved in the Proposed Move of the U.S. Foot and Mouth Disease Lab – What a “Mess!” that questioned the basis for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) support for the movement of FMD virus and research from the current location at Plum Island Animal Disease Research Center (PIADC) to the newly announced National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) site managed by Kansas State University.  This morning’s Washington Post had a very interesting article that discusses concerns about this issue.  Enjoy reading the story.

By Carol D. Leonnig
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, July 27, 2009

The Department of Homeland Security relied on a rushed, flawed study to justify its decision to locate a $700 million research facility for highly infectious pathogens in a tornado-prone section of Kansas, according to a government report. Read the rest of this entry »