Texas is now the seventh state to ban lab-grown meat sales. The law, signed by Governor Greg Abbott, is set to take effect on September 1 and will last for two years, reported Green Queen.
What's happening?
Texas joins four states that have banned lab-grown meat this year. The new law, SB 261, will enact civil and criminal penalties for offenders.
"The bill prohibits the sale and offer of sale of cell-cultured proteins to prevent Texas consumers from being a science experiment as companies seek to profit from selling cell-cultured protein with no long-term health studies," the Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association said in a statement.
The cultivated meat ban in Texas has been on the brink of happening for a while. In 2023, Senator Charles Perry authored SB 664, a bill requiring strict labeling of cultivated products, including processed plant-based foods.
Several other bills have been proposed to increase transparency in the meat industry, including HB 1374, which requires labels to include the country of origin for beef and pork products.
Why is this ban important?
Texas lawmakers are agreeing with the notion that cultivated meat products are unhealthy. However, the U.S. government is carefully monitoring these foods to ensure they meet safety and health standards for consumers. Many claims surrounding the safety of lab-grown meat, like a link to cancer, have been debunked or, at least, don't have sufficient evidence to support them.
Another cause for concern is whether this ban is more for consumers, as the lawmakers assert, or favors the Texas cattle industry, which backed the bill.
"Our association is grateful for those legislators who voted in support of this legislation and understood the core of this bill, to protect our consumers, the beef industry, and animal agriculture," said TSCRA president Carl Ray Polk Jr. in a statement on the TSCRA website.
What's being done to protect animal food alternatives?
Despite lobbying efforts to halt the lab-based food industry, the U.S. government has mostly been supportive. In 2023, the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service allowed select startups to begin selling lab-grown chicken meat.
The FDA has also taken responsibility for regulating processes and inspections for this type of food.
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No way 👎 Rather than ban lab-grown meat altogether, some states have offered less intrusive options, such as stricter labeling. For example, Iowa now requires all imitation meat and egg products sold in the state to have specific words printed on their labels, such as "fake" or "imitation," reported Iowa Public Radio.
Researchers are also uncovering new reasons to support meat alternatives and encourage industry growth. One study found that replacing half of all meat products with alternatives could cut pollution by one-third by 2050.
As more research supports the health and environmental benefits of limiting beef consumption, pressure may grow for policymakers to support further food innovations.
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