Groups Sue Missouri Over Non-Meat Law

A new Missouri law prohibits food companies from marketing products that are not "derived from harvested production livestock or poultry" as meat or face fines of up to $1,000 and spend up to a year in jail. The law would apply to meat substitutes such as soy-based, plant-based meat, which have become increasingly popular in recent years, and also "clean" meat, which is produced by growing and multiplying cells in a lab and is close to hitting the consumer market. The FDA and USDA are also studying labeling and health issues associated with lab grown meat. Parties including the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, the Good Food Institute and the company that produces Tofurky are suing over the state law that they allege attempts to stifle the growing category of plant-based meat and would prevent them from being properly advertised as described in conflict with other state and federal laws including the 1st Amendment. Andersen Sleater Sianni represents consumers who have purchased products that are misrepresented. Click here to read more about the Missouri law.