Italy has just become the first country in the world to ban lab-grown meat.
The Italian government voted in favor of a law banning the production, sale or import of farmed animal meat or feed, according to the BBC.
The right-wing government there took the measure on Thursday in an effort to protect farmers and their culture.
“In defense of health, the Italian production system, thousands of jobs, our culture and traditions, with the law passed today, Italy is the first country in the world to be safe from the social and economic risks of synthetic food,” Francesco Lollobrigida, minister of agriculture Italy, said in a Facebook post on Nov. 16.
The bill was passed in the Italian senate with 159 votes in favor and 53 against.
Supporters of the ban include Italian agricultural groups, which want to protect the country’s $10.1 billion meat processing industry.
Leaders in parliament were divided on the issue, and at one point, a fight broke out between farmers and some civil service masters.
Italian agriculture minister Francesco Lollobrigida with ban supportersMarco Di Gianvito/ZUMA / SplashNews.com
One of the leaders of the farmers’ organization confronted two members of parliament from the party opposing the ban, calling them “criminals”.
So far, the only countries where farmed meat — a market estimated to reach $1.99 billion by 2035 — has been approved for consumption are the United States and Singapore.
The European Union does not allow lab-grown meat to be eaten so far, but if it does, the Italian law could be challenged by the European Commission.
Petitioner from Coldiretti, Italy’s largest farmers association Corbis via Getty Images
Coldiretti, Italy’s largest farmers’ association, cited that the spread of lab-cultured meat would benefit multinationals at the expense of local producers, and carry health risks.
“We are proud to be the first country that, despite favoring research, prevents, as a precautionary measure, the sale of food produced by laboratories whose impact on the health of the consumer population is currently unknown,” he said. the president of Coldiretti, Ettore Prandini, in a Facebook post.
If Italian factories are found to be producing synthetic meat, they could face fines of more than $160,000, according to Forbes.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
