Last week I attended the Genetic Engineering table talk led by GRF Shivem. The discussion was focused both on ethical and technological questions that are related to advancements in genetic engineering. Although genetic engineering (broadly defined as direct manipulation of an organisms genome) has existed for awhile in a few forms, the main impetus behind a lot of current research is CRISPR. CRISPR is a big long acronym for something, but the idea is that we can control proteins and genes that bacteria use to edit genes to edit genes of our choosing. The applications are already being seen from cancer to plant breeding and others. But all of these wonderful technologies raise ethical questions. One question in particular deals with a new program that is attempting to grow human organs inside of pigs (https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/08/pig-organs-for-humans/536307/). Normally such organs provoke a dangerous immune response in humans, but with genetic engineering that might be a thing of the past.
This brings up an obvious ethical question of using animals as glorified receptacles for human organs. Someone who believes that eating meat is fine isn’t likely to object to this, as in this instance the pigs are directly saving human lives rather than “just” providing a tasty treat. However, even if one is a vegetarian (or similar) this is not a straightforward question. A good portion of people alive today (although certainly not everyone) who eat meat do not need it in a strict sense: they could theoretically cut meat out of their diet and lead a regular life. However, in this case it is a matter of life and death: someone who needs an organ will die if they don’t get it in a timely fashion. There is far larger demand for organs today than there is supply, and it’s not easy to tell a small child with liver cancer that their life is worth less than a pigs. I’m not pretending that I have all of the answers to these questions but they will only become more relevant, with larger consequences as time goes on.
I think your point about exploiting animals to grow human organs is definitely valid. While I don’t have a definitive stance on this, I would argue that the meat industry is huge enough that it would be extremely difficult to dismantle in the near future, so I have a feeling we would be able to justify this new technology. I also feel that the ethical benefits of saving the lives of people who would otherwise die on a waitlist for organs should not be discounted.