Biotech company using cell lines from aborted babies in food enhancement testing

Don't know if this has been posted yet, but...

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/biotech-company-using-cell-lines-from-aborted-babies-in-food-enhancement-te

Senomyx has been linked to:

PepsiCo*
Kraft Foods**
Nestle
Cadbury
Campbell's (has since dropped ties)
Solae (has since dropped ties)

and a few others I may be missing.

*(Pepsi products, Gatorade, Lipton Teas, Fritos, Tostitos, Lays, Tropicana, etc.)

**(Kraft, Oreo, Maxwell House, Nabisco, Trident, Philadelphia creme cheese, etc.)

This is rather terrible. Those are unethical cells.

What does "food enhancement testing" mean?

*reads the article*

Edit - Okay, I still do not know exactly how they are using them. I understand they are using them for taste testing to measure responses to food products. But how? I probably need a visual or an animation to see exactly what they are doing. It's just not clicking in my head.

So a site with an incredibly blatant agenda is making unsupported claims that support their agenda. Why is this worth our time?

Well from what I can tell, they're basically using aborted fetus kidney cells to test how different additives, conservatives etc. affect the taste of food, so that they can create cheap food (thx to conservatives) with fewer unhealthy additives that tastes great.

As I am pro-choice, I see this as recycling. That dead fetus was (for lack of a better term) going to go to waste anyway, at least this way it's helping the rest of us out.

Now if the fetuses are taken without there having been a waiver form of some sort signed by the parents, I would indeed see that as wrong, but as it stands, I don't think that's the case.

Additionally, that article says something along the lines of:

“They could have easily chosen COS (monkey) cells, Chinese Hamster Ovary cells, insect cells or other morally obtained human cells expressing the G protein for taste receptors,” Vinnedge added.

I really really really REALLY doubt that if she were right and those were viable options, that Senomyx would prefer using human fetus cells. Who wants this kind of headache?

Originally posted by ~The Wickerman~
Well from what I can tell, they're basically using aborted fetus kidney cells to test how different additives, conservatives etc. affect the taste of food, so that they can create cheap food (thx to conservatives) with fewer unhealthy additives that tastes great.

As I am pro-choice, I see this as recycling. That dead fetus was (for lack of a better term) going to go to waste anyway, at least this way it's helping the rest of us out.

Now if the fetuses are taken without there having been a waiver form of some sort signed by the parents, I would indeed see that as wrong, but as it stands, I don't think that's the case.

Additionally, that article says something along the lines of:

I got that but I don't understand the "how" in the use. They listed an explanation that included what I thought was cell-site receptors and modulation. But I don't understand what stem-cells have to do with that, at all. It's used for "testing" but the process is obscured.

The group that is making these claims are called the Children of God for Life... I'm not sure how credible they are for things of this nature...

That sounds delicious and nutritious.

Originally posted by Bardock42
That sounds delicious and nutritious.

Whole new meaning to "baby formula" huh?

disclaimer: yes, I know they're not actually used IN the food products. 🙂

How are they using the fetus? It sounds like they are using the cells to try and figure out how things taste... Why don't they just... You know... Taste it?

In my school we're growing meat in labs with stem cells. Granted, as of now it's only possible at a microscopic level but it's still rather interesting.

meh, even if its true I can't seem to care...

Originally posted by inimalist
meh, even if its true I can't seem to care...

Originally posted by Astner
I don't get it. It's the stem-cells of aborted babies, would it be more moral to flush the down a drain?

well, it only makes sense

if you against abortion, then we might as well make no meaningful use of the process at all. babies in a toilet 🙂

Originally posted by Liberator
The group that is making these claims are called the Children of God for Life... I'm not sure how credible they are for things of this nature...

Then go on the Senomyx website, it says pretty much the same thing in fewer words.

Maybe it doesn't make anyone else uneasy, but seeing as how I'm pro-life (GASP!) and Christian (how dare I?), it's a different story for me.

Just pointing out the story for people who wanted to know, is all.

Originally posted by Bat Dude
Then go on the Senomyx website, it says pretty much the same thing in fewer words.

Maybe it doesn't make anyone else uneasy, but seeing as how I'm pro-life (GASP!) and Christian (how dare I?), it's a different story for me.

Just pointing out the story for people who wanted to know, is all.

More like "Chistian (GASP!) and pro-life (how dare I?)"

Originally posted by Bat Dude
Then go on the Senomyx website, it says pretty much the same thing in fewer words.

The word stem is nowhere on the site.
The word baby is nowhere on the site.
The word fetus is nowhere on the site.
The word abort is nowhere on the site.

These are the kinds of things you learn when you think for yourself (GASP!) and don't blindly accept the rantings of crazy people (how dare I?).

Wow, someone can use their browsers "find" feature.

Originally posted by Bardock42
Wow, someone can use their browsers "find" feature.

By browser has a find feature? I used google's "site:" code, I usually use it to make porn searches more efficient but this seemed like a more noble cause.

Originally posted by Symmetric Chaos
By browser has a find feature? I used google's "site:" code, I usually use it to make porn searches more efficient but this seemed like a more noble cause.

Oh that's actually more thorough. I just thought you looked at the page entry.