Louisiana Lawmakers Introduce Bills Targeting Lab-Grown Meat

Arlington, Va. — On Wednesday, Louisiana State Senator Michael Fesi introduced Senate Bill 152, and on Thursday, State Representative Rodney Schamerhorn introduced House Bill 512, companion measures that would prohibit the advertising, manufacturing, distribution, and sale of lab-grown meat products for human consumption in the state. The bills define lab-grown meat as animal tissue grown from cells outside of a living animal.

The Center for the Environment and Welfare (CEW), a consumer watchdog leading an ongoing public education campaign on lab-grown meat, says the proposal reflects growing concern about rushing experimental food products into the marketplace without sufficient long-term study.

“Lab-grown meat is an experimental product that lacks long-term health studies,” said Will Coggin, research director at CEW. “With both bills in the House and Senate, legislators in Louisiana are making clear that there must be answers about long-term health and safety impacts before products grown in vats and bioreactors reach grocery stores.”

The Center for the Environment and Welfare says the proposal underscores a growing bipartisan emphasis on caution, transparency, and consumer protection. Seven states have banned the product category to date.

CEW launched a public education campaign in 2023 to help consumers and lawmakers get the facts about lab-grown meat. For example, supporters often claim that lab-grown meat is more sustainable than traditional, farm-raised meat products. However, researchers at UC Davis believe lab-grown meat could have 25 times the environmental impact of farm-raised meat.