There is a push to produce lab grown brown meat. Last week, Florida became the first state to officially ban lab-grown meat, and more states are floating similar bills. After years of massive fundraising rounds and media attention, the cultivated meat industry is facing pushback from politicians and powerful meat lobbying groups. Referred to as “fake meat” and “slop” by politicians, the protein is made by taking animal cell cultures and growing them in a lab into an “edible” meat substitute. So, why are politicians so fired up? Threats to state’s AG industry, specifically ranching.
Nationally, the meat industry is worth $283 billion annually, 13 billion in Kansas alone, and some traditional meat producers have spent years supporting hurdles for anyone trying to disrupt it. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association representing cattle ranchers, pushed for a labeling rule preventing lab-grown meat from being called beef. Earlier this year, the same group and other meat lobbyists supported bills banning lab-grown meat from school lunches. For me, I just remember this…
