WASHINGTON — The federal government is nearing a decision to allow the sale of meat and milk from cloned cows and their offspring, according to officials from government, industry and consumer groups.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to take a major step toward approval soon by proposing to permit the sales, subject to 60 days of public comment and some additional review.

That could lead to choice cuts of steak and cartons of milk produced from cloned cattle landing in kitchens in the next several years.

Given the high cost of cloning, though, industry officials and consumer advocates said it's more likely consumers would be sold the meat of offspring of cloned cattle, not of the clones themselves.

"You're not producing them to eat; you're producing them to breed," said Scott Davis, president of Start Licensing, a joint venture that owns the licenses for cloning livestock. He said cloning a cow would cost $15,000.

Even after the FDA reaches a decision, livestock producers will need up to four years or more to raise offspring ready for slaughter, and most dairy farmers may ignore the technology until the cost falls, their trade groups said.

Once approval comes, however, industry and consumer groups are concerned that a public backlash will follow. Studies support the safety of the food products, but surveys indicate many Americans remain jittery or harbor ethical concerns.

"A train wreck is coming," said Carol Tucker Foreman of the Consumer Federation of America. "It's not about the science. It's how people see their food."

Some consumer advocates and dairy companies have urged regulators to delay a decision until those fears can be calmed. Yet with studies supporting the food's safety accumulating, the FDA has edged toward approval.

The FDA had said an announcement was likely within the next few weeks, but the recent surprise resignation of FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford may delay it, according to industry and consumer groups.

Since 1997, Americans have been eating processed foods made with genetically modified vegetables, such as corn and soybeans. But many consumers regard goats and pigs differently from canola and squash, polls show.

Sanford Miller, former director of the FDA's food-safety office, said research hasn't raised safety concerns.

"As far as we can tell, there doesn't seem to be a difference" between food from cloned animals and conventionally bred animals, he said.