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In the News, Winter 2023-24: Italy Becomes First Country to Ban Cultivated Meat
The Italian parliament has passed a new law banning the production of cultivated meat, a lab-grown product created by culturing animal-derived cells. The ban also applies to cultivated meat’s importation, distribution, and use. Penalties for violating the ban are steep, with companies that produce the meat subject to fines of up to 150,000 euros ($162,700).
Italy’s minister of agriculture, Francesco Lollobrigida, stated that the ban was made “in defense of health, of the Italian production system, of thousands of jobs, [and] of our culture and tradition.” During the months since the ban was proposed, other government officials expressed concern over the synthetic meat’s quality and said that it could pose a threat to Italy’s culinary heritage.
This national ban of lab-grown meat is the first of its kind. Cultivated meat has been sold in Singapore for several years, and the Netherlands allows preapproved tasting of it in a controlled environment. Romania’s Senate has voted to prohibit its sale, but the measure has not yet been approved by their lower house of parliament.
In the United States, the USDA has granted two companies approval to make and distribute cultivated meat products, which are already being sold in restaurants. A Florida bill has been introduced that would make its manufacture, sale, and distribution in the state illegal, for the purpose of protecting the cattle and farming industries. If it is passed, Florida would be the first state to ban cultivated meat.
Sources:
Italy bans cultivated meat products. Chemistry World, November 23, 2023. chemistryworld.com/news/italy-bans-cultivated-meat-products/4018541.article.
Italy’s parliament approves ban on lab-grown food amid tensions. Reuters, November 16, 2023. reuters.com/markets/commodities/italys-parliament-approves-ban-lab-grown-food-amid-tensions-2023-11-16/.
Published in the Journal of Health and Healing™
Winter 2023-24 | Volume 47, Number 4
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