Lab-Grown Beef Is Red Meat for the Conservative Base

What do some Republicans have against lab-grown meat? Legislatures in Alabama, Arizona, Tennessee and Florida are all considering bans on the sale or import of so-called “cell-cultured food products.” In Florida a bill has reached Governor Ron DeSantis’s desk, and though he has not yet signed it, he has come out strongly in favor of meat.

The case for (and against) these laws isn’t primarily economic, though DeSantis did speak of the importance of agriculture, and the Florida Cattlemen’s Association has lobbied for the bill. (Florida has more beef cows than all but eight states.) At any rate, it is unclear whether artificial meat will ever be cost effective. Or consumers might never want it in great quantities. Or it might coexist with real meat, just as today pork and beef coexist.