Last week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law to ban cell-cultivated or “lab-grown” meat from the Sunshine State. “Take your fake lab-grown meat elsewhere,” DeSantis said. “We're not doing that in the state of Florida,” reported the Sarasota Herald Tribune. Anyone involved in selling, making, or distributing cultivated meat in Florida could face fines of up to $500 and 60 days in jail – the sentencing equivalent to assault and battery.

Alabama has become the second US state to ban the sale of cultivated meat. The bill, signed into law by Governor Kay Ivey on mayo 7, will make it illegal for anyone to manufacture, sell, or distribute cultivated meat in Alabama. Beyond Florida and Alabama, there are similar bills on the table in Arizona, Kentucky, and Tennessee. If all these bills pass some 46 million Americans would be protected from fake-meat consumption.

“Let me start off by explaining why I drafted this bill,” said Rep. David Marshall, an Arizona Republican who proposed the legislation to ban cell-cultured meat from being sold or produced in the state. “It’s because of organizations like the FDA and the World Economic Forum, also Bill Gates and others, who have openly declared war on our ranching.”

But the lab-meat lobbyists are pushing back full force. Justin Kolbeck, CEO of cultivated seafood startup Wildtype, has been trying to persuade lawmakers to reconsider several proposed bans. Jessica Almy, senior vice president of policy at the Good Food Institute, when speaking to Wired, called it "really significant" and "absurd" to prohibit a food before it's even on the market for people to try. But should Americans be able to “try” foods that may pose health risks?

Expect groups like these to continue to pressure state lawmakers into easing restrictions in an ongoing tug-of-war for the food supply. Almy suggests there may be legal grounds to challenge the ban but it's unclear whether that will happen. The arguments opposed to the ban, say it conflicts with federal law and would limit consumer choice and innovation.

The state bans highlight potential tensions between the conventional meat industry and the emerging cultivated meat industry. However, not as much as one may think, since major meat producers like Cargill and Tyson have invested in cultivated meat companies, so they tend to oppose state bans. Wildtype's Kolbeck and Ayré Elfenbein have been meeting with lawmakers in several states to urge them to rethink or amend proposed bans. Interestingly, it seems the notoriously problematic factory farm conglomerates may stand in lock-step with faux meat, while small biodynamic and regenerative farmers oppose it in the marketplace.

Upside Foods, a cultivated meat startup, is urging customers to ask Governor DeSantis to veto the bill. If these industry lobbyists know citizens’ input matters, we in the natural foods movement should too. Contact your state government and let them know what you think. Remember, they work for us!

Resistance to cultivated meat is also brewing in Europe, with Italy and France recently approving a ban. But it's not clear if the laws will stand, as they may violate EU directives. The EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council has called for a broader debate on lab-grown meat. Yet, so far, only the US, Singapore, and the Netherlands have approved the sale of lab-grown meat.

The U. S. Department of Agriculture last June approved two companies, Upside Foods and Good Meat Inc., to sell cultivated meat, though it’s not yet readily available in grocery stores. The faux meat is grown from animal cells and can be formed into nuggets, cutlets or other formations.

Health concerns around lab grown meat include:

• Nutritional Content: Cultivated meat will not have a comparable nutritional profile to real animal meat. Even if cultivated meat provides essential nutrients like protein, vitamins, and minerals in similar quantities to traditional meat products, we know synthetic vitamins and minerals carry risks for toxicity and are nutritionally inferior to naturally occuring animal protein and food-based nutrients.
• Lack of Safety of Culturing Process: The process of culturing meat involves growing animal cells in a laboratory setting using “immortal cells” (yes, like in cancer cells). There are concerns about potential contamination during the culturing process, which could lead to foodborne illnesses if not properly controlled and monitored.
• Use of Growth Factors and Additives: Cultivated meat requires the use of growth factors, hormones, or additives to promote cell growth and development. There are concerns about the safety of these substances and their potential effects on human health, especially since residues are present in the final product.
• Allergenicity: There's a possibility that cultivated meat could contain allergens not present in conventional meat. For example, if growth media or additives derived from allergenic sources are used in the culturing process, they could potentially trigger allergic reactions in sensitive individuals.
• Microbial Contamination: Cultivated meat production involves handling biological materials in a controlled environment. There's a risk of microbial contamination.
• Long-Term Health Impacts: Since cultivated meat is a relatively new technology, there's limited data on its unexplored long-term health impacts.

We at Moms Across America believe we should support local, regeneratively raised livestock farmers and organic produce growers. You can find local farmers near you through FarmMatch.com or buy and share locally grown food from neighbors through GetFarmish.com. You can also grow your own food with our Neighborhood Food Network.