What the cluck is going on?!
Florida just passed Senate Bill 1084 to limit your right to choose your chicken by banning cultivated meat (meat grown directly from animal cells). This legislation threatens to undermine the progress we and the rest of the industry have made towards building a more sustainable and resilient future of food. There’s a critical window now for Governor Ron DeSantis to veto this bill before it becomes a law. See below for how to contact him and urge him to veto.
We understand cultivated meat may not be for everyone, but it’s clucking frustrating to see a state close their doors before they’ve even had a chance to taste it – or really even learn about how it’s made and the potential benefits. It’s like killing your chickens before they hatch.
How to Get Involved
Call (850-717-9337) or email (GovernorRon.DeSantis@eog.myflorida.com) Governor DeSantis and ask him to veto the FDACS bill (SB 1084 and HB 1071) to protect American innovation and the right of consumers to choose what they eat.
There’s No Reason To Chicken Out:
Supporters of these bans are victims of online misinformation and cite concerns over safety, competition with the conventional meat industry, ethics, and economics. When something is new, there are always people who spread fear far and wide across social media and other channels. Here’s why we disagree:
– Safety: Cultivated meat is regulated by the FDA and USDA and is subject to the same oversight as conventionally produced meat. And, it’s produced in a clean, controlled environment free of mass animal herds and slaughter that makes them less susceptible to contamination than industrial animal agriculture.
– Complementary, Not Competitive: Cultivated meat is a tool to help meet the world’s growing demand for meat. It will coexist with other methods of meat production. Given the pressures facing our food system, we should be innovating to develop every safe, sustainable (and tasty) option.
– Choice: Everyone should have the freedom to make their own choices about the foods they eat. It’s a fundamental right that shouldn’t be infringed upon by governmental interference.
– Innovation: These proposed bans jeopardize America’s reputation as a leader in innovation and will give other countries a competitive edge in developing a more resilient and self-sufficient food system
– Impact: Most importantly, it has the potential to give people the meat they love in a way they feel good about. Why try to stop that?
Who Has Already Joined in the Fight Against This?
– The North American Meat Institute (NAMI), the U.S.’s oldest and largest trade association representing packers and processors of meat and meat products that account for more than 95 percent of the output from the United States. NAMI points out that Florida’s ban is illegal under federal law, and is bad public policy that would restrict consumer choice and stifle innovation.
– Firms that have invested in cultivated meat and seafood innovation, and other innovative food and biotechnology initiatives, including 38 venture organizations that signed a letter against this ban. Firms like these are now uncertain as to whether they can invest in innovative technologies in Florida.
– Other peer cultivated meat and seafood companies, of course.
– Many of you! Thank you for putting in calls, writing letters and emails, and generally voicing your opposition to Florida’s ban. We cluckin’ love it.