Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Italy's waging a crusade against lab-grown meat. Does it have a point?

Italy's waging a crusade against lab-grown meat. Does it have a point?

Italy is moving to become the first country in the world to ban its companies from producing lab-cultivated meat, threatening fines of up to €60,000.

Upon introducing the bill to the Senate, the country's Agriculture and Food Sovereignty Minister, Francesco Lollobrigida, said:

"It damages small food producers.
It damages the environment.
It standardises food habits.
Studies do not guarantee it's safe."


Does he have a point on health risks?

He may. Most studies haven't progressed far enough to say whether lab-made meat is 100% safe. The answer also changes depending on what part of the world we look at, but the response is largely favourable to the idea.

Singapore became the first country to give the green light to human consumption of cultivated meat in 2020. The US Food and Drug administration followed in November 2022.

And in the EU? Cell-based agriculture is still being researched, but the bloc's Food and Safety Authority says it's a "promising solution" towards achieving its ambitious environmental goals.

Furthermore, the EU already granted companies like BioTech Foods, Nutreco and Mosa Meat millions of euros in research funds. In short, a half "yes", despite the scepticism of many Italian MEPs.


 
Will local farmers in Italy suffer?

Lab-grown meat isn't on supermarket shelves or restaurant menus yet, so we don't know how it will go down among consumers. And, anyway, Italians don't seem very keen on giving it a go.

Despite the country's love for meat, a recent poll found 84% of respondents said they would never try laboratory-made steaks.

It appears to be enough to rule out risks to local farmers. However, they're still not convinced. So much so that they teamed up with the World Farmers' Organisation to start a global petition against cultivated meat, or, as they call it, "Frankenstein food".

It reportedly has more than half a million signatures already and it's supported by many local authorities, particularly in the meat-producing regions. It also got the support of clerics, over concerns about "the health of the faithful".

Italian farmers' campaign against cultured food


And yet, all these efforts may just be in vain.

If the EU approves cultivated food, the proposed bill won't be enough to keep it away "from the tables of the Italians", as promised by Italy’s Agriculture Minister.

Yes, it does ban Italian companies from producing it, but doesn't prevent foreign businesses from exporting it to Italy.

The opposition argued that this would only create a competitive disadvantage for Italian businesses, instead of protecting them.

Does it damage the environment?

Cultivated meat works with bioreactors - or fermenters - which are vessels built to "provide an effective environment for enzymes or whole cells to transform biochemicals into products".

And yes, they need "a lot of energy", says Bruno Cell, an Italian start-up researching cultured meat.

"If that energy doesn't come from renewable sources, the environmental impact can be more or less significant", they told Euronews.

On the other hand, lab-grown food needs far less water and soil than traditional meat, cutting greenhouse gas emissions and reducing deforestation. And it eliminates the need to slaughter animals or breed them in intensive farming conditions.

Italy PM Giorgia Meloni tastes a piece of mozzarella at a Coldiretti event in Milan. Oct. 1, 2022


Ultimately, how closely does cultivated meat resemble traditional meat?

"Cultivated meat is made of the same cells as animals", says Bruno Cell.

"The base-product is 100% an animal cell. The tissues are the same, they have the same organoleptic features and when they are cultivated, they receive theoretically the same nourishment that the animals get".

"Hence, so-called 'artificial meat' is not so artificial. [...] This bill basically says that anything that doesn't come directly from the land is dangerous."

"It's just going to delay Italy's research progress in this field."

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×