A federal judge has denied the State of Texas’ request to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the recently passed ban on cell cultured “meat,” allowing the case to continue.
U.S. District Court Judge Alan Albright of the Western District of Texas ruled Tuesday that the constitutional claims of the case brought by Wildtype and UPSIDE Foods may move forward, rejecting Texas’ request to dismiss the case.
However, Albright also denied the two companies’ preliminary injunction request, allowing the law to remain in effect while the case proceeds.
Passed by legislators last year, the new law took effect September 1. It bans the sale of cell-grown meat until September 2027. Unless extended by lawmakers, after this time cell-grown meat that is sold in the state will be required to be clearly labeled with “cell-cultured,” “lab-grown,” or something similar.
The law was met with immediate resistance from Wildtype and UPSIDE Foods, both of which are based in California and produce cell-grown salmon and chicken.
Filed as a constitutional challenge, the lawsuit accuses Texas of closing “its border to an entirely out-of-state industry to protect Texas agriculture from lawful competition,” even though the plaintiffs have met the necessary requirements and completed inspections to sell their products across the country.
Plaintiffs specifically allege that the law “violates the dormant aspect of the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, because it was enacted with the purpose, and has the effect, of discriminating against competition coming exclusively from out of state.”
The Dormant Commerce Clause is derived from the U.S. Constitution and is an implied restriction on states’ abilities to pass laws that would halt or overly burden interstate commerce.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller condemned the federal court’s ruling, saying that it is “an assault on Texas ranchers, a gift to Washington elites, and a slap in the face to state sovereignty.”
“This ruling is an assault on the livelihoods of Texas ranchers and impairs Texas’s ability to protect its people,” said Miller. “Texas banned lab-grown meat to protect family ranches, preserve honest food labeling, and keep our citizens safe from synthetic products with zero long-term health record.”
Miller said that Texas will defend its right to make decisions regarding food and public health.
“We will not be bullied,” continued Miller. “We will not back down.”
Microsoft founder Bill Gates, an investor in UPSIDE Foods, has been one of the most vocal liberal billionaires pushing for the research and production of alternative proteins. He has called the adoption of alternative proteins the future and something every wealthy country should adopt for the sake of climate change.
Texas is one of seven states that have passed laws banning lab-grown meat, and along with Florida, it is one of only two states facing legal scrutiny over such measures.
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