Legislation introduced Tuesday would require the use of “imitation” or similar terminology on labels of plant-based meat alternatives sold in American grocery stores.
A bipartisan, bicameral group is leading the Fair and Accurate Ingredient Representation on Labels Act of 2024 — or FAIR Labels Act — that would also require either “cell-cultured” or “lab-grown” to be prominently displayed on the packaging of products produced from a tissue sample and grown through the culturing process.
Missouri Republican Mark Alford led the bill in the House and said the “American consumer deserves to know what they are eating and feeding their families.”
“Whether they choose protein substitutes like plant-based or lab-grown meat or traditionally raised meat, the product should be labeled clearly,” he said. “Farmers and ranchers across the country work from sun-up to sun-down to produce high-quality and nutritious meat for consumers. It is only fair that all products are labeled fairly. This begins with transparent and appropriate labeling laws which our legislation requires.”
Aside from Alford, the bill also has the backing of House Ag Democrats Jonathan Jackson of Illinois and Don Davis of North Carolina, Rep. Roger Williams, R-Tex., and Senate Ag Committee Republican Roger Marshall of Kansas, who introduced a companion measure in that chamber.
“It's pretty simple: if food is represented as meat or poultry but is either lab-grown or made from a plant protein, it should be prominently displayed on the label,” Marshall argued. “Distinguishing between a 'black bean burger' and an actual beef burger shouldn't be hard. But, as other meat alternatives with misleading names continue to appear on shelves, we need to do more to ensure the transparency of imitation meats versus the real farm-raised meats.”
It’s easy to be “in the know” about what’s happening in Washington, D.C. Sign up for a FREE month of Agri-Pulse news! Simply click here.
For his part, Jackson said he hoped “to include these provisions in the Farm Bill reauthorization.”
Under a 2019 agreement that laid out the framework for the regulation of cultured meat, the Food and Drug Administration takes the lead on cell collection and growth, but labeling and product safety matters fall under the purview of the Department of Agriculture. USDA approved the first sale using the technology last year, a cultivated chicken product for use in a handful of restaurants.
The products were once viewed as a major growth market in the food space, but conventional meat sales still vastly outpace sales of meat alternatives.
The Good Food Institute, a nonprofit organization advocating for the adoption of meat alternatives, argues the meat alternative sector is “still very early in its development” and that consumer research commissioned by the group shows a preference for “cultivated” terminology rather than “cultured,” “lab-grown,” or “cell-based.”
The bill has the backing of several farm groups including the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, National Pork Producers Council, National Chicken Council, American Sheep Industry Association, and the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture.
For more news, go to Agri-Pulse.com.
