CULT Food Science Pens Open Letter to Florida Government Opposing Cultivated Meat Ban – vegconomist
Cellular agriculture investment firm CULT Food Science Corp. has published an open letter to the Florida Government expressing the company’s opposition to the state’s ban on the sales of cultivated meat. “The notion that this meat is fake or unhealthy is simply wrong,” urges the letter.
This May, Governor Ron DeSantis made Florida the first US state to impose a ban on cell-cultivated meat, with the signing of Senate Bill 1084, declaring: “We’re fighting back against an ideology that ultimately wants to eliminate meat production in the US and around the globe. In the State of Florida, we’ve put down the marker very clearly: we stand with agriculture.”
He added, “Take your fake lab-grown meat elsewhere. We’re not doing that in the state of Florida.”
Critical importance
CULT Food Science, which recently appointed Mitchell Scott (previously of The Very Good Food Company) as CEO following the stepping down of Lejjy Gafour, has backed a list of well-known companies in the space including Umami Meats, MeliBio, Jellatech, California Cultured, and several names in the alt pet food space.
The open letter as below was written by CULT Food with the intention of amplifying the discussion around cultivated meat and its “critical importance to decarbonizing the global food system”.
The full text of the open letter is as follows.
Dear Governor DeSantis; Speaker Renner; and Senate President Passidomo:
The science and evidence around cultivated meat is clear: it is both safe for consumption and environmentally friendly. With more risks than ever to the climate, cultivated meat is no longer an alternative but rather a necessity. Policymakers need to be embracing sustainable protein production and not trying to put up regulatory obstacles towards its adoption. Jeff Bezos and the Bezos Earth Fund recently have made two breakthrough commitments to new facilities aiming to accelerate research and development of cultivated meat at the Imperial College of London and North Carolina State University.
The United States military has also recently announced their intent to pursue cultivated meat as a source of protein for troops. The facts are clear: factory farming consumes too much land and produces too many greenhouse gases. And the global demand for meat is growing, not decreasing. That’s why cultivated meat is the answer. It is real, genuine animal meat simply made through different production methods.
The notion that this meat is fake or unhealthy is simply wrong. The FDA has approved cultivated meat for human consumption and yet policymakers at the State level are trying to impede the progress of this innovative industry. Food production is simply not sustainable if it harms our environment and emits greenhouse gases which are significantly more harmful than carbon dioxide emissions.
At CULT Food Science we are dedicated to advancing this critical technology which we believe is one of the most important levers for decarbonizing our planet. The recent bans out of Florida do not represent the views of leading scientists or environmental research, but rather rely on misinformation and trying to slant the public discourse in a negative way. This is a harmful attitude and needs to be seen for what it is, which is protecting the interests of a select few and trying to discredit one of the most exciting areas of biotechnology and food science.
“The facts are clear: factory farming consumes too much land and produces too many greenhouse gases”
Decisions about what to consume or purchase should be left to the market and consumers, not dictated by legislation that hampers progress and competition. Restricting the sale and production of cultivated meat products denies Floridians access to these innovative products and limits consumer choice. CULT Food Science appreciates the opportunity to provide its perspective regarding this important issue.”
Shifting the agricultural system towards sustainability
Mitchell Scott, comments today, “We recognize cultivated meat and cellular agriculture are new technologies that many do not yet understand in their entirety. However as one of the few publicly traded companies in the world dedicated to advancing these crucial new innovations to address climate change, land usage and animal welfare, we feel it is important to use our platform and shareholder base to advance science and evidence-based discussions around cultivated proteins.
“We invite an open discussion with any policymakers on this topic and are committed to continuing to advance the cultural conversation around how we shift our agriculture system towards sustainability.”
