In an effort to codify an agreement regarding oversight of lab-grown meat between the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) and the Food & Drug Administration, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R., Miss.) introduced legislation giving USDA primary responsibility to regulate, inspect and label cell-cultured meat and poultry marketed to the American public.
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Over the past year, FSIS and FDA have claimed responsibility for cell-cultured meat and poultry regulation. In the absence of statutory requirements, the agencies signed a formal agreement in March outlining a joint regulatory framework for lab-grown meat. The agreement states, however, that it “does not create binding, enforceable obligations against either agency”….
“While I am encouraged by the USDA-FDA framework, it is nonbinding and subject to modification or termination every three years,” Hyde-Smith said. “My bill essentially codifies the terms of that agreement….”
Agriculture and livestock organizations across the country have been vocal about their desire for FSIS to have jurisdiction, Hyde-Smith noted.
“As a cattle producer myself, I am proud of the beef we grow — and let me be clear: Beef is raised in a pasture, not a laboratory,” she added.
Read full, original article: Bill codifies USDA oversight of lab-grown meat
