Around 46 million Americans live in states that have introduced bills to ban cultivated meat, the latest escalation in a surprising culture war.
Unless Florida governor Ron DeSantis has an unexpected change of heart, it will soon be a crime to sell or make cultivated meat in the Sunshine State. A bill passed by the Florida House and Senate is now awaiting the signature of DeSantis, who has already indicated his opposition to what he calls “fake meat.” If he does sign the bill into law, anyone who sells, makes, or distributes cultivated meat in Florida may be subject to a fine of up to $500 and 60 days in prison.
“Beating somebody up and selling cultivated meat are the same in the eyes of the law in Florida,” says Justin Kolbeck, CEO of cultivated seafood startup Wildtype, who has been trying to persuade legislators to ease up on a number of proposed bans. As well as the Florida bill, there is also proposed legislation to ban cultivated meat in Alabama, Arizona, Kentucky, and Tennessee. If all of those bills pass—an admittedly unlikely prospect—then some 46 million Americans will be cut off from accessing a form of meat that many hope will be significantly kinder to the planet and animals.
The wave of proposed legislation, including very strict labeling laws, may come as a surprise given that cultivated meat isn’t on sale anywhere in the US at the moment. Floridians were already very unlikely to get their hands on a cultivated chicken cutlet, but the proposed ban shuts off that option altogether. “It is really significant. And to prohibit a food before it’s on the market for that whole population, before they’ve had a chance to try it and see if they want to buy it, feels absurd,” says Jessica Almy, senior vice president of policy at the Good Food Institute, a nonprofit that lobbies for alternatives to animal protein.
You must log in or # to comment.
[Meta comment]
This has nothing to do with this article, but I just want to express my appreciation for your contributions. You consistently post high quality articles (never anything MBFC deems low credibility) on a variety of topics. When something slips through that’s already been posted, you’re quick to delete it which helps de-clutter the feed. I’ve also never sensed any agenda from you, and you’re just here making the community great.
So, thanks!
You just made my day. Thanks @ptz@dubvee.org!
I agree, I see your posts all the time, and I really appreciate you taking the time to post great stuff.
And I appreciate your kind words!
Good quality articles with real summaries. Niiice!
If you’re like me and wanted to know why Desantis opposes lab-grown meat… it’s literally a political stunt. He gives no justification. What a putz.
https://fox59.com/news/national-world/ron-desantis-has-beef-with-lab-grown-meat/amp/
yay, another article that uses the term “slammed”
It’s just more war on innovation to keep the status quo. The farmers grow the crops with government subsidy to feed the cattle to sell the beef to restaurants to fatten more people up and further prop up private healthcare and pharma subscription treatments (wegovy anyone?)
Heaven forbid anything change. It’s important that big farm gets their subsidies and that americans use animal suffering for their profit because that’s the way it’s always been.
It’s pure unadulterated anti-wokery.
What can I do that will anger the left.
What’s especially stupid is that dietary choice is not entirely a left-right thing, but the likes of DeSatan sure do try…
Remember the Nazis making a big deal of guzzling milk, because “superior race”, lol. Also, they did make a big deal of “soy boy” (as if being veg*n and/or drinking soy means you are not “manly”, lol).
Conservatives are bad and should be removed from power.
Wow, you said that so much nicer than I do.
I’ve had a few “Removed by moderator” moments that lead me to tone it down slightly.
Great campaign slogan right here
Instead of lab grown meat they want meat grown in the most deplorable conditions with 14 year olds working there.
You forgot to add “where they get all the profits.” It’s the exact same play that big oil used to slow down the roll out of renewables and EVs.
“New thing bad, our thing good, new thing unamerican, our thing patriotic, new thing poison, our thing delicious”
-meat companies probably
Leave it to the shithole states to stand in the way of progress and conservation
All the shitty states.
Yeah. Every time I see an article like this where a bunch of states are being authoritarian shit holes I check and an always relieved my state isn’t included.
My birth state is usually on the list but fortunately not usually as early or as draconian as the others while still being terrible. Florida, Texas Alabama, Louisiana, Missouri, Tennessee, and at least one the Carolina’s are usually the most crazy in that order. Praise the gods for Atlanta
Inflicting pain and suffering onto any being that is not them is the point with Republicans.
Explains why they don’t want the lab-grown stuff. Upside, maybe if we grow brains for the meat so it can suffer they’ll let it go back on sale. Then we can grow brains for the Republicans too, and shortly thereafter we won’t have any more Republicans.
Like the posh kids at school and their supporters think they’re part of the club.
What a bunch of corrupt fucking demagogues 🤬
One second, let me try to recreate Ron “I lost a presidential bid to an orangutan” Desantis’s thought process:
Inhale
WE HAVE TO BAN FAKE MEAT BECAUSE ITS MADE BY LIBERAL WOKE COMMUNIST SCIENTISTS THAT WILL LACE IT WITH TRANSGENDERISM AND TURN OUR KIDS GAY OUR REAL AMERICAN KIDS SHOULD ONLY EAT REAL AMERICAN MEAT
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go disinfect my mouth
REAL AMERICAN KIDS SHOULD ONLY EAT REAL AMERICAN MEAT
Rule? No homo? That’s what she said?
What’re we doing these days?
Phrasing?
Woohoo freedom and small government
If it doesn’t cause a level of pain and psychological torment to an animal that would drive a human to suicide, it ain’t real meat
Free market conservatives. /s
Damn shots fired.
Goddamnit this is so frustrating
When did we slip into unreality?
I think it was when all those clown sightings happened in 2016
Once they took over the White House it was checkmate
Like all right-wing culture wars, it just happens to align with the interests of billion dollar industries. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence.
Which billion-dollar industries are served by forcing people to remain pregnant? Forcing trans people to use the wrong bathrooms?
The church.
So will this effect imitation foods already on the market? Supermarket sushi will have to go the way of the dodo.
Depends how woke those products are. If it’s just to sell cheap imitation products it’s okay, but if it’s to help reduce agricultural impact or reduce animal suffering then it’s a criminal offense
I was specifically thinking of the imitation crab meat in most California Rolls.
