This week, a committee of South Dakota legislators unanimously approved a bill aimed at defining and regulating lab-grown meat, a move that reflects the growing interest in transparency within this fast-evolving sector.
The legislation, proposed by the state Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, mandates clear labelling for products derived from cultivated meat.
The House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee voted 13-0 to advance the bill to the full House of Representatives.
Cheyenne Tant, a policy adviser for the department, highlighted the need for transparency, stating: “South Dakota consumers deserve clarity when deciding between products grown in a lab and those raised by our farmers and ranchers”.
Under the proposed legislation, lab-grown meat is defined as 'cell-cultured protein,' specifically indicating that it is produced for human consumption from cell cultures or DNA of animals, cultivated outside of a live animal.
The bill stipulates that any product containing cell-cultured protein must be clearly labelled as 'cell-cultured' or 'lab-grown,' with non-compliant products considered misbranded. This provision builds upon a 2019 state law aimed at preventing the mislabelling of meat products.
As cultivated meat transforms the food industry with promises of sustainability and ethics, the introduction of the C-label sets a new standard for transparency. Read more about the C-Label in this piece by Renato Pichler, V-Label founder, in: The C-label: Paving the way for trust and transparency in cultivated meat.
The enforcement of these labelling requirements would fall to the state Animal Industry Board, which would work with companies to ensure compliance. The committee meeting saw no opposition to the bill, with supporters from various sectors, including agriculture and alternative protein advocacy.
While some representatives voiced concerns about the nature of lab-grown meat – describing it as 'gross' – others highlighted the importance of distinguishing traditional meat from lab-cultured alternatives.
Erin Rees Clayton, a senior scientific adviser for the Good Food Institute, commented: “Cultivated meat is meat at the cellular level, offering similar taste, texture and safety profiles, but produced differently”.
The bill arrives at a time when the cultivated meat industry is still in its infancy, with only two US companies currently approved by federal regulators to produce such products, neither of which has yet brought a product to market.
Some argue that lab-grown meat could play a significant role in addressing the global demand for protein, enhancing food supply chain resilience against disruptions.
This legislative move follows similar actions in other states; while some, like South Dakota, are pushing for clear labelling, others, including Florida and Nebraska, are considering full bans on lab-grown meat.
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