Curious to try Laboratory chicken sandwich? Do not look to feed your desire in Mississippi, which has moved to disabling the so -called so -called so -called this week. grown or cellular meat.
The proposed ban, unanimously approved by the House of Representatives, carries a fine of $ 500 and up to three months in prison for anyone who grows or sells such products in the state.
The bill that the law of Tate Reeves of Mississippi, the Republican, is expected to be the latest in a number of legal maneuvers by states that seek to reduce the emerging mass industry cultivated by cells-the fact that such products are not inaccessible to consumers in the United States.
Unlike alternative meat products such as impossible hamburger, which are made exclusively from plants, laboratory meat begins as cells taken from an animal. By nourishing them with a nutrient cocktail, these cells can catch these cells to develop into animal muscle, connective tissue or fat – the basic components of the meat.
Proponents argue that cultivated meat can solve many environmental impacts and provide eaters to meat protein that does not require defeat animals.
Last year, Florida and Alabama became the first states to ban the cultivation and sale of meat grown in laboratories, and a number of other countries, including Nebraska and Georgia, are considering similar measures.
The prohibitions are unconstitutional, claims and do not survive court calls, some are already in progress. “It’s a lot of political theater,” said Suzannah Gerber, Executive Director Association for innovation of meat, poultry and seafoodbusiness group.
The opposition to a cultivated meat usually grabbed in the red states, but the trend resists easy categorization. Business groups as National Cattlemen’s Association and Meat institute They went against restrictive measures and Republican lawmakers in Wyoming and South Dakota abolished similar accounts, and many described the proposed prohibitions as Anathema conservative values such as limited government and free trade.
“If we let the government decide what food we eat and what medicines we take, our bodies will soon be in the state like souls that live under tyranny,” said State Senator Bob IDE from Wyoming, quoted Thomas Jefferson, shortly before Vote against measures in his condition.
For now, it is unlikely that the measures would have a great impact on the real world. Although the prospect of mass -produced laboratory meat has caused brass subtitles and attracted billions of investment, its commercial viability remains unproven.
Only two companies, Upside Foods and Good meatare currently entitled to sell cultivated meat in the United States; The companies have briefly sold a limited number of restaurants, none of which were banned in the states.
At the beginning of this month, the food and drug administration granted Regulatory to the third company, Mission BarnsFor laboratory product grown laboratory fat. In addition to being supervised by the FDA, cultivated meat products are regulated by the Ministry of Agriculture.
Some opponents of cultivated meat traffic in the deception of the health risks of cultivated meat, while others, such as Governor Ron Desantis of Florida, accepted the opportunity to defend pets.
However, cultivated meat was also swept in the national cultural wars. This is partly because supporters often describe laboratory meat as “without killing” humane alternatives to kept animal products. Many also see this as a way to reduce the environmental impacts to increase millions of cows, pigs and chickens – and a large number of antibiotics needed to keep healthy in overcrowded feed shelters.
“There is no way we can keep healthy food as we do today with livestock production, because we simply do not have land and resources,” said David Kaplan, expert agriculture at Tufts University. “We need alternative options.”
Such sentiments develop politicians who look unpleasant for vegetarians and environmentalists and for which the consumption of the juicy steak T-Bone is an act of patriotism.
Last May, when he announced his decision to sign a state ban, Governor Desantis tried to receive his attitude as a wound against the liberals. “Today Florida is fighting against the global elite plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a Petri bowl or mistakes to achieve its authoritarian goals,” he said during a press conference.
Environmental benefits of cultivated meat remain theoretical and studies suggest that certain production methods can be energy -intensiveEspecially if it is implemented on a large scale.
The cultivated meat begins with a small sample of animal cells that can be collected from fertilized eggs or tissue biopsy from live animals. Cells are nutrients nutrients with nutrients and grow rapidly in large tanks called bioreactors. A number of technical obstacles remain. It is much easier to create ground meat products than intact meat cuts and the production of cultivated meat is expensive and is only done on a very small scale. Experts say companies will have to drastically increase production and reduce costs to actually compete with conventional meat.
It seems that Americans are ready to try refined meat. IN Survey 2024 At Purdue University, two -thirds of respondents said they would be open to eat a cultivated chicken or beef in a restaurant.
According to Joseph Balagtas, school head Center for Demand Analysis and Sustainability of Demandwhich has conducted a survey, consumers constantly state that the taste and price are the largest factors affecting their food decisions. In the end, he predicted that the fate of cultivated meat would depend on whether the companies could clean the two bars. “If it tastes good and it’s affordable, consumers will eat it,” he said.
Last year it started to sell good meat its cultivated chicken In a butcher in Singapore, the first country to approve laboratory meat. Josh Tetrick, founder and CEO of EAT Just, the parent company Good Meat, said the company has sold less than £ 100 in the last six months.
“Can companies like ours be devised a way to make it on a scale defined as tens of millions of pounds, at a price that makes sense?” he asked. “That’s a big question.”
For the time being, industry executives are trying to thwart the state restrictions.
Last August, Foods filed a federal law as an unconstitutional law. Institute of Good FoodThe alternative meat defense group, which provides legal assistance to food up, claims that prohibitions violate the trade clause of the Constitution, which forbids states from deployment between interstate trade. Experts say that laws also violate the so -called doctrine of preliminary emings, which gives federal law before the law on state laws when both conflicting.
“These laws are quite obviously contrary to both,” said Madeline Cohen, associated director of regulatory matters.
Mississippi’s bills supporters did not explain their antipathy to cultivated meat; State legislators did not hold public hearing or comment before unanimously voting for a ban. Representatives of Bill Pigott and Lester Carpenter, two Republicans who introduced legislation, did not respond to requests for commentary. Mr Reeves, Governor of Mississippi, refused to comment, as well as the State Commissioner of Agriculture, Andy Gipson.
Yet Mr. Gipson was not ashamed to criticize cultivated protein as hostile to farmers. “I want my steak to come from beef from a farm, not from Petri’s laboratory,” he wrote last year on his website.
Proponents of grown meat describe dichotomy as false, and many farmers of livestock agree that they do not see products derived from cells as a threat to their livelihood. “We know that Americans love our product and will continue to buy it,” said Sigrid Johannes, a spokesman for the National Association of Beef.
Doug Grant, a native of Mississippi, whose launch of seafood, Atlantic Fish Co.., trying to produce Black sea bass in the laboratoryagrees. He said his product, if he had gained regulatory approval, would not introduce him to competition with local manufacturers, and noted that excessive fishing led to a decrease in the population of Black Sea Bass and that the type is It is difficult to increase In aquaculture pens.
“Mississippi raises a lot of catfish, but no one talks about doing cultivated catfish,” Grant said. “I understand that people are afraid of new things, but no one forces the consumer to buy these products.” If you don’t like it, you don’t have to eat them. ”
