The world's first Boer goat cloned from embryonic cells was born Wednesday in north China's port city of Tianjin, said Chinese scientists engaged in the cloning program.

The cloned lamb was born at 9:05 AM Wednesday at the Tianjin veterinary research institute, a research body that has been engaged in the embryo cloning project since 2002.

"The birth of the cloned lamb has laid a solid basis for us to further exploit the cloning technology to boost the animal husbandry, biomedicine and pharmaceutical industries," said Ding Boliang, head of the institute.

His organization introduced more than 300 pure bread Boer goats for the cloning program in 2002 and has since built a genetic database of the goats.

Boer goat, a species originating in South Africa, grows extremely fast and yields more mutton than ordinary goats or sheep. An adult Boer goat weighs about 100 kilograms and can provide more than 40 kilograms of mutton.

Experts say the goat brings more than delicious dishes to the Chinese dinner table -- it may also help millions of redundant rural laborers make a living.

(Xinhua News Agency November 3, 2005)