Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed Senate Bill 1084 into law, becoming the first U.S. state to ban the sale of cell-based meat (also known as “cultivated” or “lab-grown” meat).
“Today, Florida is fighting back against the global elite’s plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a petri dish or bugs to achieve their authoritarian goals,” said Governor Ron DeSantis about the new law.
Cultivated meat company GOOD Meat released a statement in response to the passage of Florida’s new law. GOOD Meat received a “no questions” letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in March 2023 regarding the company’s premarket consultation submission, as well as a Grant of Inspection (GOI) and label approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to sell cultivated chicken in June 2023. In its statement, GOOD Meat stressed that the Florida legislature did not provide credible safety concerns in its justification for the cell-based meat ban. GOOD Meat stands behind the safety of cultivated meat and says the Florida law contradicts the work that cell-based meat companies are conducting with USDA and FDA to ensure the safety of their food products.
