Italy bans the production and sale of lab-grown meat
Italy's right-wing government led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is banning the production and sale of lab-grown meat. The Chamber of Deputies in Rome passed a corresponding bill on Thursday, which had previously been approved by the Senate. The debate on synthetic meat has recently come to a head in Italy. The opposition vehemently rejected a ban. This makes Italy the first country in Europe to introduce such a ban, as reported by the Ansa news agency.
To produce meat in the laboratory, stem cells are taken from living animals and placed in a culture fluid containing fats, amino acids, vitamins, minerals and sugar. There they multiply and grow into muscle tissue. This means that no animals have to be killed for meat from the laboratory, which is supported by animal rights activists. The environmental aspect is also often emphasized.
Politicians from the governing parties were delighted after the vote in the House of Representatives. "We are concerned with protecting our tradition, our products and, above all, the health of Italians," said Lega politician Davide Bergamini, for example.
The opposition, on the other hand, was critical. In particular, they questioned the constitutionality of the law. It could also violate international law and European regulations with a blanket ban, which could lead to a conflict with the EU Commission.
According to the law, violations are to be punished with fines of up to 60,000 euros and the confiscation of goods.
Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.
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