European countries debate lab-grown meat

©FRANK PERRY/AFP/Archives

While Hungary has proposed a law to ban lab-grown meat, the European Commission and several member states have opposed it, saying the ban could jeopardise the free movement of goods within the EU and threaten food innovation and Europe’s technological autonomy.

The Hungarian proposal, tabled on 10 July, aims to ban the production of laboratory meat in order to preserve culinary traditions. However, according to the Commission’s TRIS database, the initiative contravenes the Novel Food Regulation. “Such a ban would preempt the harmonised authorisation procedure for novel foods at European level,” states the Commission’s opinion, as reported by EurActiv. If Hungary proceeds, it could face sanctions for non-compliance with single market rules.

Several European states, including Sweden and the Netherlands, share the Commission’s position. They stress that the Hungarian approach not only affects trade, but also hinders innovation. Like others before it, this legislation divides Europe between modernization and preservation, in a context where food security and ecology are at the heart of the debates.

Meanwhile, other countries such as Italy have proposed similar restrictions and have been called to order by the EU. At the same time, farmers' organisations and PDO consortia are opposing the directives of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), considering the health criteria on cultivated foods to be insufficient. Coming from France, Portugal, Spain, the Czech Republic and Poland, they denounce “substantial gaps” and call for the authorisations of laboratory meat to be frozen. According to them, if European traditions had to be overridden, it would at least have to be done in an irreproachable manner in terms of health.

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