A lawmaker in Nebraska has proposed a bill aimed at protecting the state’s livestock and poultry industries by making it unlawful to market plant-based protein, insect-based protein and cell-cultured foods as meat or poultry.
Sen. Carol Blood, D-Bellevue, has introduced Legislative Bill 14, saying the legislation would provide for truth in advertising and labeling in the sale of meat and poultry, and to prohibit misleading or deceptive practices for those who market the alternative protein products.
"The goal of this bill is to promote truth in advertising in our state," Blood said in a press release. "Meat comes from livestock and that industry is paramount to the fiscal success of Nebraska. Nebraska's single largest industry is cattle. The multiplied impact each year is 12.1 million. Nebraska is also home to 3.1 million hogs and pigs and commercial operations can be found in nearly every county. The poultry industry also plays an important role in our economy."
In the proposed legislation, meat would be defined as “any edible portion of any livestock or poultry carcass or part thereof and does not include lab-grown or insect or plant-based food products.”
The bill further defines poultry as “any domesticated bird, including but not limited to, chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese raised in confinement for human consumption.” It defines livestock as “cattle, calves, sheep, swine, ratite birds, including but not limited to, ostrich and emu, llamas, alpaca, bison, elk, goats, horses and rabbits raised in confinement for human consumption.”
Under the legislation, anyone found guilty of misrepresenting a product as meat or poultry would be convicted of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
The bill, if approved as written, would take effect on January 1, 2020.
Blood stressed that if the bill becomes law, it will not result in increased inspections or special offices being created.
According to the Nebraska Legislature webpage, the bill was referred to the state’s agriculture committee. Rather than having two houses of government, Nebraska has a unicameral legislature.
Similar law in Missouri
The proposed Nebraska bill follows similar legislation proposed in Missouri that sought to define meat and poultry. That legislation was signed into law in 2018. The Missouri Department of Agriculture has a special webpage devoted to explaining the provisions of that law.
