(CN) – Technology has ushered in a new era for food, prompting lawmakers across the nation to ask: What is meat?
As the number of food startups growing cultured or in vitro meat increases, so too does the number of concerned lawmakers.
During the 2019 legislative session, more than a dozen states passed bills seeking to regulate or redefine the use of the term “meat” on consumer packaging. Two federal agencies, the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Agriculture are also developing national guidelines.
One bill remains pending before the Washington state Legislature and another in Washington, D.C.
While for many consumers, this science-fiction food seems like something from the future, animal rights advocates say it can’t come soon enough.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals president Ingrid Newkirk invested in early research to develop in vitro meat by supporting Willem van Eelen, a Dutch researcher who pioneered lab-grown meat. Nearly 20 years later, she is amazed to watch as Memphis Meats’ meatballs and Finless Foods’ fillets near dinner plates.
“They actually are animal proteins, it is meat, it is not like meat or faux meat, it is actual animal cells, so it’s absurd to even suggest it isn’t meat,” Newkirk said. “The future of food is now.”
But others say not so fast—particularly those with a stake in steak production.
Earlier this year, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association announced a campaign to correct "fake meat facts," questioning the technology, safety, and scientific integrity of lab-grown proteins.
“To me, meat needs to have feet,” said Colorado state Representative Kimmi Lewis, R-Kim.
Lewis co-sponsored a bill in Colorado advising the use of words “lab-grown” or “artificially cultured” to distinguish the products from meat from animals. The bill didn't make it past committee, but the Colorado House adopted a resolution in April asking the FDA to expedite rule-making to require accurate food labeling to inform consumers.
“[Meat labeling] is important to me because I’m a cattle producer myself," Lewis said. "We just want to make sure that consumers know what they’re getting in the cell-cultured protein.”
In nearby Arizona, lawmakers approved legislation prohibiting producers from "misrepresent[ing] a product that is not derived from harvested production livestock as meat or a meat food product,” suggesting use of the terms “fake meat or alternative meat.”
Arkansas took it a step further in March, signing legislation that extends labeling protections to meat and rice, concluding that products such as “cauliflower rice” can no longer be labeled as such.
The FDA and USDA announced a joint partnership to develop labels and regulation for these products in March, and shortly after two Mississippi senators introduced a bill to Congress that would codify this partnership into national law.
The FDA will oversee “cell collection, cell banks, and cell growth and differentiation,” while the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service will step in after cells have been harvested to regulate “the production and labeling of human food products derived from the cells of livestock and poultry."
A USDA spokesperson said the agency does not expect to issue new inspection regulations for cultured products.
"As with all FSIS-regulated products, cell-cultured products will be subject to FSIS requirements for hazard analysis and critical control points and sanitation, as well as other applicable requirements," the spokesperson said.
Despite attempts to legislate these products, advances in the field are about to leave the barn.
Boulder-based Bond Pet Food is developing pet food from lab-grown meat using a process similar to cheese making. Founder Rich Kelleman said it’s a common misconception that there’s something straight out of Frankenstein about the products.
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