Harvard Law School’s Animal Law and Policy Clinic submitted a petition to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), requesting the agency adopts a labeling approach for lab-grown meat that respects First Amendment speech protections.
“The (Harvard) letter specifically requests that FSIS establish a labeling approach for cell-based meat and poultry that does not require new standards of identity and does not ban the use of common or usual meat and poultry terms specified in standards of identify,” a letter read from FSIS, in confirmation of receiving the petition.
The petition suggested FSIS wait until having a better understanding of the characteristics of lab-grown meat products before “establishing speech restrictions that could raise constitutional questions.” FSIS is considering the Harvard request as a rulemaking petition.
