US: Florida Legislature remains against cultured meat

A major farm bill that includes restrictions on the sale of cultured meat cleared a House committee on Monday. If signed by the Governor, this bill would prohibit the production, sale or distribution of “cultured meat” in Florida, subject to criminal and civil penalties.

"I call it 'cultured protein,'" said state Rep. Danny Alvarez. "It's not even cultured meat because it suggests some kind of parity between real meat and what's produced in a lab."

Alvarez actively supports this legislation . And while it's a fairly new science and a promising industry, Republican lawmakers fear it could be potentially dangerous.

“Simply put, it’s safety,” he said. - “There is no long-term data on the safety of cultured protein. We know that the USDA has approved it for human consumption. But we have no idea how its consumption will affect people's health in the future. So until then we'll just put on the brakes."