The Italian Parliament has adopted a draft law banning the production of meat in laboratory settings and the sale of these products.
With the law approved by the House of Representatives yesterday, a fine ranging between 10 and 60 thousand euros can be imposed on the production and sale of food and feed from cell or tissue cultures obtained from vertebrate animals.
In addition, the sale of plant-derived products under names such as “steak” and “salami” will also be banned.
The law, which bans the production and sale of meat produced using animal cells and tissue cultures in a laboratory environment, was designed to protect “Italian cuisine” and the agricultural sector.
Organizations such as the Farmers’ Union have supported the regulation drawn up by the Ministry of Food Sovereignty, which was first established by the right-wing coalition government.
After the draft law was approved in Parliament yesterday, Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry Francesco Lollobrigida said that Italy is “the first country in the world to eliminate the social and economic risks of artificial foods” and that this was done for the sake of health and work as well as the protection of culture and tradition.
Coldiretti, the country’s largest agricultural union, launched a petition against “artificial foods produced in laboratories” and collected more than two million signatures. The association claimed that “financial power groups and multinational corporations are trying to impose such artificial foods on global markets, despite doubts about their long-term effects on human health.”
In the poll conducted by Coldiretti, it was found that 74% of Italians oppose foods produced in a laboratory.
“Retroactive law”
Those who opposed legal regulation argued that producing meat in a laboratory setting was environmentally and ethically more beneficial.
In addition, the ban draws attention to the risk of falling behind in research and development activities in this area.
Opponents of the ban also accuse the government of trying to create fear by using the term “artificial meat.”
During the hours in which the bill was voted on in the House of Representatives yesterday, the opposition “More Europe” party organized a demonstration in front of Parliament.
Riccardo Maggi, the party’s general secretary, said the government led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was sabotaging Italian researchers and companies that wanted to open up to the future market in the sector through a “reactionary law.”
Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry Minister Francisco Lollobrigida, who is also Meloni’s brother-in-law, had previously imposed restrictions on the sale of flour obtained from insects such as grasshoppers and banned its use in traditional products such as pizza and pasta.
“We are proud that Italy is the first country in the world to ban this type of production that eliminates our traditional diet,” Lollobrigida said in a statement to Rai1 yesterday, after the draft law banning meat produced in a laboratory environment came into effect. Law.
The Italian minister said he hopes similar ban decisions will be taken throughout the European Union.