Cell-cultured food’s biggest hurdle: ‘The ick factor’

If cell-cultured foods ever gain federal approval for sale and consumption in the United States, they may not take off in popularity.

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Alyssa Rebensdorf addresses cell-cultured foods at the 2019 Annual Meat Conference. (Roy Graber)
Alyssa Rebensdorf addresses cell-cultured foods at the 2019 Annual Meat Conference. (Roy Graber)

If cell-cultured foods ever gain federal approval for sale and consumption in the United States, they may not take off in popularity.

There are several challenges that the up-and-coming industry faces, Alyssa Rebensdorf, counsel, Faegre Baker Daniels LLP, said on March 5 at the Annual Meat Conference in Dallas, Texas. Rebensdorf said her law firm represents several companies in the “conventional meat space.”

While such meat and poultry alternatives have not been given approval for distribution by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), cell-cultured foods are also subject to potential state laws.

Currently, Missouri law forbids food products that have not derived from a harvested farm animal to be labeled or marketed as “meat.” Similar legislation is being considered in the states of Washington, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, North Dakota, Nebraska, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Indiana and Virginia, Rebensdorf pointed out in her conference presentation, “Alternative Meat Products: A Closer Look.”

Rebensdorf was asked by one conference attendee if she thought laws such as the one in Missouri and others being considered will hinder the eventual sale of such products.

“I think the ‘ick factor’ is the challenge for cell-based meats, said Rebensdorf. “I don’t think it’s the regulatory environment.”

Rebensdorf referenced the recently released Power of Meat 2019 Report, in which 55 percent of respondents said they would absolutely not eat cell-cultured foods.

However, she added, “Regulators are sensitive to what consumers want, so I think that’s going to be kind of interesting in respect to cell-based meats.”

She also noted that two major companies that are well-respected for their operations in meat and poultry production – Cargill and Tyson Foods – have invested in cell-cultured foods companies, which might add to the credibility of the cell-cultured food companies’ claims and products.

 

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