Florida was sued for banning the sale of artificial meat, which was accused of actually protecting the cattle industry

This site reported on August 14 that the US state of Florida was sued over its law banning the sale of lab-grown meat. A cultured meat company called Upside Foods argued that the state’s legislation was unconstitutional.

This site noted that in May this year, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the ban, saying that the legislation was “a counterattack against the global elite’s efforts to force the world to eat meat or bugs grown in petri dishes.” One way to plan for its authoritarian goals." Upside Foods and the nonprofit public interest law firm Institute of Justice filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday alleging that Florida's lab-grown meat ban is aimed at... protects the state’s cattle industry and calls the law unconstitutional. The complaint alleges that SB 1084 violates the Supremacy Clause and the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, as well as two federal laws governing the inspection and distribution of meat and poultry products.

Upside and the Institute for Justice argue that Florida’s ban on cultured meat is intended to protect the state’s cattle industry from out-of-state competition. Upside charged that the ban thus violated the "dormant portion" of the Commerce Clause, which prohibits state protectionism. At the signing ceremony, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, flanked by cattle ranchers, "spoke from a podium with a 'Save Our Beef' slogan," the complaint states.

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, also named as a defendant, called the lawsuit "ridiculous." Simpson said in a statement: "Lab-grown 'meat' has not been proven safe enough for consumers, and it is being driven by a farm-closing libertarian agenda. Food security is a national security issue and our farmers are the first A line of defense. States are the laboratories of democracy, and Florida has the right not to be a corporate guinea pig, leave the Frankenstein meat experiments to California." But Upside's lawsuit says Florida is not responsible for lab-grown meat. The meat ban is motivated by protectionism, not food safety, pointing to DeSantis' press conference announcing the ban as evidence.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Upside's products were safe to eat in 2022, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved products from Upside and competitor Good Meat for sale the following year.

Upside believes Florida’s ban is hurting the company’s operations in other parts of the country as well. Florida’s ban on cultured meat was the first in the nation and inspired others to follow suit nationwide. Alabama banned lab-grown meat in May, but the legislation will take effect in October. Lawmakers in Arizona, Kentucky, Iowa, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia have proposed similar bans.

Upside is asking the court to declare Florida’s cultured meat ban unconstitutional and issue a preliminary and permanent injunction against the law.

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