Lab-grown meat isn't on store shelves yet, but some states have already banned it
Lab-grown meat is not currently available in any U.S. grocery stores or restaurants
Lab-grown meat is not currently available in any U.S. grocery stores or restaurants. If some lawmakers have their way, it never will be.
Earlier this month, both Florida and Arizona banned the sale of cultivated meat and seafood, which is grown from animal cells. In Iowa, the governor signed a bill prohibiting schools from buying lab-grown meat. Federal lawmakers are also looking to restrict it.
It’s unclear how far these efforts will go. Some cultivated meat companies say they’re considering legal action, and some states – like Tennessee – shelved proposed bans after lawmakers argued they would restrict consumers’ choices.
Still, it’s a deflating end to a year that started with great optimism for the cultivated meat industry.
The U.S. approved the sale of lab-grown meat for the first time in June 2023, allowing two California startups, Good Meat and Upside Foods, to sell cultivated chicken. Two high-end U.S. restaurants briefly added the products to their menus. Some cultivated meat companies began expanding production. One of Good Meat’s products went on sale at a grocery in Singapore.
But before long, politicians were pumping the brakes. Lawmakers in seven states introduced legislation that would ban cultivated meat, according to Kim Tyrrell, an associate director with the National Conference of State Legislatures.
In the U.S. Senate, Republican Sens. Jon Tester of Montana and Mike Round of South Dakota introduced a bill in January to prohibit the use of lab-grown meat in school lunch programs.
The backlash isn’t confined to the U.S. Italy banned the sale of lab-grown meat late last year. French lawmakers have also introduced a bill
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