US beef industry takes aim at lab-grown meat
In a sign that cultured meat will tip over into the mainstream, the US beef industry want to prevent “fake meat” being labelled as “beef.”
The US Cattlemen’s Association has filed a petition with the US Department of Agriculture asking for a formal definition to differentiate between conventional meat and cell cultured meat.
The cattlemen want “beef” to be defined in this fashion:
[The government] should require that any product labeled as “beef” come from cattle that have been born, raised, and harvested in the traditional manner, rather than coming from alternative sources such as a synthetic product from plant, insects, or other non-animal components and any product grown in labs from animal cells.
It shows that traditional US farmers are concerned about the rise of future foods from Silicon Valley.
This week Joanna Blythman wrote in The Guardian that US future food innovators are inspired by processed UK meat alternatives like Quorn.
Sustainable Farming Campaign: Pushing for the integration of sustainable farming into local, regional and national government policies.
Sustain
The Green House
244-254 Cambridge Heath Road
London E2 9DA
020 3559 6777
sustain@sustainweb.org
Our mission is to catalyse systemic change in the UK’s food and farming system – securing a healthy, fair, and sustainable future for all people, nature and a stable climate.
© Sustain 2026
Registered charity (no. 1018643)
Data privacy & cookies
Icons by Icons8
