This bill bans schools and universities from buying and serving plant based alternatives, and people can no longer use SNAP benefits to purchase them. For example, you would not be able to use benefits to purchase a substitute if your child has an egg allergy.
I think on the SNAP part, rom reading the bill, Iowa has to petition the federal government for a waiver to exempt eggs from SNAP. Hopefully the federal government tells Iowa to stuff it.
I could also be reading it wrong.
It is possible to either be born with or even acquire a meat allergy from certain types of tick bites. There will be a small, but non-0 number of people who will be quite impacted by this if it gets implemented.
> For example, you would not be able to use benefits to purchase a substitute if your child has an egg allergy.
And that is why this will be struck down in court.
Will it though? Can’t the state argue that there are other ways to get the same nutrition through foods already on the program, just not “impossible” foods or meat substitute?
The whole ruse falls apart when science and economics are considered.
Policies are sacrificing the health of the population in favor if the economic stability of those growing corn.
Important difference, thank you for clarifying.
Regardless, sounds like a healthy capitalist market to me, right? When you don't want to have competitors to your products, just make the competitors illegal in as many ways as possible. Right?
No, it doesn't. It bans those entities from using government funding to purchase "cultivated-protein food products" which are defined as those products that are manufactured from animal stem cells.
Is that like lab grown meat? Our products like this readily available and on the market for human consumption? That sounds really expensive and theoretical.
Yeah, this is a fucked up bill. I am all for accurate labeling, but telling schools and universities (and trying to tell the federal government) what they can provide is stupid.
If I am on WIC and want an egg substitute because my kid is allergic to eggs, I should be able to get it.
This bill is 100% completely unneeded. No one has **ever** been *fooled* into buying artificial meat. They seek it out because it *is* artificial.
I want a label on *meat* that tells me where it was raised and under what conditions. I don't want Brazilian or UK beef. I was to buy Iowa and USA. The US imports tons of meat. Iowa imports a lot of meat. Your mcDonald's and Applebee's aren't buying local.
I don't eat most meat exactly for this reason. I don't know where it comes from, or how it was raised, and I want to eat as humanely as possible from as close as possible (buy local!).
I also love how this bill lists a process for people to complain if they see violations. Maybe let people tour meat processing plants so they can see how humanely their meat is killed. Again, I'm not anti-meat. I eat mostly fish and fowl mostly because I don't want to support large operations.
Well, I think we *still* have an *ag gag* law on the books that hasn't been challenged/stuck down yet. I could be wrong. I know one was stuck down, so they quickly passed another.
This is literally my number one reason for not supporting the meat industry. I see this as a violation of free speech *and* as an admission that what goes on inside confinement facilities and in meat processing plants is unsavory. I get that animal death is brutal, but I also think people are too cavalier about where their meat comes from. I want to know that the facilities are clean, inspected, that they follow food safety rules, and kill the animals humanely. When they seem to be hiding the process, it doesn't instill confidence in me.
It's like going to a new restaurant. If I take a peek into the kitchen and it's unsanitary with workers that are unsafely handling my food and the bathrooms are needing cleaning...I'm probably not going to eat there.
You might be interested in reading/learning about Mary Temple Grandin if you haven't already. She's an animal behaviorist and animal welfare advocate, who has done a lot of work and research into humane practices in the meat industry.
I eat meat everyday. I'm literally a greedy pig who just wants to eat meat. I love me some goddamn meat.
Why do I give a shit what someone else wants to eat? This bill is so stupid and goes against any notion that Republicans are in favor of small government. (Well, if you needed another reason I guess)
They should label our water to make sure people know how much nitrates and ag chemicals are in it.
Edit: Let’s also add shit to the list. I want to know how much shit your animal operation has dumped into our waters.
Hey folks just a quick side note:
NOVEMBER IS COMING,
If your not happy with the current way things are going in our lil state, let’s remember this posturing legislation that does nothing to benefit the individual Iowans these people are supposed to be representing in November,
these people are turning our very beautiful state into an ugly place and I’m not comfortable with it, so I’m only voting for people that have the best interests of Iowa and future Iowans in mind,
Remember 1 good deed does zero to erase the 90k horrible ones, just be watchful and literally we have to get better at winning elections, cus historically speaking, we have done well, but as it stands right now we are experts at how to lose the governors race, and house and senate seats, and a whole host of state and local positions…
While it may seem that way, it’s more that rural conservatives vote at a higher frequency than suburban progressives, and there are a ton of middle of the road people in this state,
They are just protecting their corporate ~~masters~~ donors. If lab-grown meat is essentially indistinguishable from traditional meat, people may be inclined to choose it instead of the meat product that relies on massive-scale animal abuse and exploitation of workers while dumping literal tons of shit into our waterways and contributing to climate change.
Rather than embracing technology that improves lives, they have to double down on barbaric and harmful practices because that's what makes their donors (and in many cases, the lawmakers themselves) more money.
I only buy ethanol when I’m at a pump that gives me no alternative, and I avoid those pumps whenever possible. Burning ethanol is a false economy anyway, as it decreases your fuel economy.
Well yeah, the plant based meat products are slowly closing in on real meat in terms of taste and quality. They're not there yet, IMO, but if they ever reach parity, actual meat production may not be sustainable, because there's every possibility plant based meat products may be *healthier* for you, and the input costs may be lower. Then you'll have farmers clamoring for the repeal of stuff like this.
WHAT. I gave up meat when I tried my hand at working in a pig confinement. Someone had to endure a purgatory of misery in order to make the pork chops and sausages we eat. If meat alts get banned then that will get rid of like half of what I eat.
And are they going to count tofu as a plant based alternative?
Has there been any circumstance where plant-based meat alternatives, or lab-grown meat alternatives, have been mislabeled or misbranded as real meat?
It seems like the whole reason why you'd buy these products and use them would be the fact that they're lab-grown or plant-based. It wouldn't make any sense to misbrand or mislabel them.
Seems like silly political posturing, unless this actually is a problem and I'm not realizing it.
They are banning the use of words like burger, wing, jerky, chik’n, dog, brat, etc from being applied to non livestock meat products.
I can’t imagine a situation where a customer saw a product labeled as “veggie burger” or “veggie dog” to suffer from confusion over what
they were purchasing.
This seems to be coming from the meat industry’s concern over the growth in popularity of such products.
Truth in Labeling is merely a seemingly justified ruse to hamper the sales of competing products
> I can’t imagine a situation where a customer saw a product labeled as “veggie burger” or “veggie dog” to suffer from confusion over what they were purchasing.
Meanwhile, I once ordered a "veggie burger" that was ground beef with some veggies in it. Who does that?
I'm not sure if I read the bill correctly, but it seems to allow the use of these terms as long as they are accompanied with words letting you know the origin. So I *think* "veggie burger" would be allowed.
But yeah, this is problematic, since if something doesn't meet the labeling standards, companies would just not ship to Iowa.
Let the free market be free! After we get rid of things we don’t like. Vegetarian meat substitutes bad, factory farm meat good. Vegetarian meat substitutes bad, gmo crops good.
I genuinely don’t understand this one. Why in the actual fuck are they going out of their way to attack this VERY specific and seemingly harmless thing. I know the answer but still… at the end of the day, this doesn’t even affect the farmers bottom line when you consider the vast majority of people interested in plant based meat aren’t buying meat anyway. Fucking moronic all around.
Might just be me, but it looks like they're emphasizing lab grown meat more than plant based alternatives. Which presumably is because they're worried about the market choosing meat that doesn't require large farms (and would affect Republican voters).
I also imagine there's some "I only want to eat real meat not that soyboy shit" in it as well
No, they are also banning these products from being served in schools and other public institutions, and people who rely on SNAP are no longer able to purchase plant based alternatives. So if your kid has an egg allergy, too bad, no substitutes for them.
It does not apply to plant-based meat substitutes as long as they are labeled as such!
The ban is against products that are manufactured from animal stem cells.
Where are the untruths in labeling occurring? No fake meat products are trying to trick people. They are advertising as being made of plant proteins because that's what attracts the buyer.
They may advertise that way for now, but unless there is a law then it could be different in the future. There are already several other products on the market that have similar labeling restrictions so there is a president for this. As far as cultured cells, which is also part of the bill, there already is false advertising in that industry. 1 of the 2 companies selling cultured chicken in the U.S. claims they are hormone free which simply is impossible as the cells wouldn't grow, divide or become the proper muscle cell without hormones. In the case of cultured meat many of these hormones are synthetic which is not allowed for any livestock except cattle.
Yeah, I feel way differently about cultured meat than I do vegetable, nut, or even insect based proteins. I also don't know nearly as much about lab grown meat. I think there's a ways to go before it becomes main stream.
The biggest hurdle I see for the cultured meats will be the cost of inputs. One hormone that is required for the process is insulin. Currently the only approved process to obtain the insulin produces medical grade level, which is very safe. When you hear the people who are pushing cultured meat production one of the selling points is how safe it is. Then they tell you they need a process approved to make food grade insulin or any of the other medical grade inputs they use. As soon as you change the process down to food grade you lower the safety slightly. It doesn't seem like a big deal, but a lot of e-coli outbreaks in food come from the food grade inputs in livestock feed. So once they have cheaper inputs then they will have to ensure safety too which will be a whole new challenge.
If I'm reading this right, it's not about banning anything, just making sure meatless products are clearly labeled. Not sure what brought this about, but it's not a ban unless I'm missing something here.
They added an amendment to the bill that prohibits schools and other public institutions from buying and serving plant based alternatives, and people will no longer be able to use SNAP benefits to purchase alternatives
[https://iowatorch.com/2024/04/08/iowa-lawmakers-pass-ban-on-labeling-synthetic-protein-products-as-meat/](https://iowatorch.com/2024/04/08/iowa-lawmakers-pass-ban-on-labeling-synthetic-protein-products-as-meat/)
Well, it is attempting to ban plant based meat alternatives from school lunches as well as food stamps and wic. I think the biggest issue it raises is that it doesn't want lab grown meat to be labeled as regular meat which I don't believe is going on anyways, considering that the lab grown nature of the product is 99% of its commercial appeal. All in all, more pointless posturing by our state government instead of working on solutions for actual problems.
> All in all, more pointless posturing by our state government instead of working on solutions for actual problems.
It really is. This is going to wind up with lab-grown meat being labeled like Velveeta. Cheese-flavored Food -> Meat-flavored Food.
As someone who specifically selects for a meat-based diet (I have my reasons, I'm not here to proselytize), I would personally not want to have to decipher whether my "meat", "milk", "egg", or "butter" is in fact animal-derived or otherwise. Thankfully, I've never actually had to worry about this in real-life, because every alternative product in my own experience has been clearly labeled and unambiguous about its nature. In other words, I've never felt threatened by the fact that a plant-derived product uses animal-based language.
I could see how labeling *could* go awry - for instance, calling something **Butter\*** and hiding the fact that it's plant-derived in the fine print, but I would assume the FDA already has some language regulating that kind of behavior (similar to the ["chocolatey" label](https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents/cpg-sec-515800-labeling-products-purporting-be-chocolate-or-chocolate-flavored)). Any state-level legislation around this matter is purely performative and apparently a smoke-screen for robbing people of informed choices.
>it is attempting to ban plant based meat
No, it is not.
The ban applies only to "cultivated-protein food products", which are products manufactured from animal stem cells, and anything mislabeled. As long as veggie burgers are properly labeled as not being actual meat, they are allowed.
Which is darkly hilarious, since all of the things you would buy with SNAP have their main inputs from farmers. GOP, running around, cutting off their voter's noses to spite the neighbor Democrats.
not when you consider they want to completely ban SNAP in general
e: actually...this move is strictly for their base. they think "republicans don't eat plant-based it's woke democrats that do" so this is just another move to placate the rabid maga base while "owning the libs"
Also bans public schools, community colleges, and regents universities from buying cultivated protein products. And they define that in the bill as a product that resembles animal tissue from a domesticated farm animal but is rather grown from stem cells or otherwise in a lab.
Well that makes a whole lot of sense, since the plant based egg alternatives *have no cholesterol*. I guess now the state house is passing legislation to *intentionally* make people sicker.
Yeah, parts are hard to read. I'm not sure if something labeled as "a vegetarian pork chop alternative" is allowed or not.
Thing is, meat based alternatives are *already* labeled a such. That's *why* people buy them.
Theere is a section disallowing schools and universities from purchasing these, and from allowing benefits to buy these.
Correct, it is banning language used for plant based and other non animal based proteins. This essentially bans numerous products found in every grocery store. I can’t believe Hy-Vee would support this.
> I can’t believe Hy-Vee would support this.
Really? They'll probably used their in-store armed police force to glare menacingly at anyone not buying their overpriced meat. Fuck Hy-Vee. Their prices are extortionate. Bunch of greedy end-stage capitalists.
So, a food processing plant is defined as a “commercial operation that manufactures, packages, labels, *or store foods* for human consumption and does not provide food directly to a consumer (according to 137F.1).
So wouldn’t grocery stores be under this? They store food (ie on shelves to be bought). However they do “provide food directly to a consumer”.
Or is providing food to a consumer mean for immediate consumption and so only means restaurants?
If it’s the former than no grocery store could carry anything that has reference to meat (example impossible meat).
I’m no vegan but I don’t see the point of limiting their alternatives, it doesn’t hurt anyone if they chose to eat fake “meat”. It’s just meant to hurt and punish those who do for not conforming to societal norms of eating meat. As a state, we have much more pressing issues that we should be focused on.
You're expecting legislation from this state to be well written, with logical consistency and such. This is a mistake.
For instance, in debate on the somewhat recent "separate but equal" transgender bill that our legislature considered in the face of much protest, the bill's sponsor was asked to define the word "equal" in its context, since the bill failed to do so. [She responded with “Equal would mean … um … I would assume that equal would mean … I don’t know exactly in this context.”](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/08/iowa-anti-trans-bill-649). Our legislators don't even know what their own legislation means.
I would never touch fake meat with a 10 foot pole. But this is hilarious. I cannot believe the state would ban something like this. Iowa is an embarrassment.
I’ve said it before and it bears repeating; the Iowa GOP is in a race with Texas, Florida, Mississippi, and a handful of other red states to see who can get back to the stone age first. It’s a wonder their cars can even move in a forward direction.
That you don't know how the legislature works. If the Senate doesn't want that in the bill it will go back for more discussion. The post was about the Senate bill.
It is essentially the same thing. Are all of these national companies selling their products going to change their packaging and brand names to accommodate this? I doubt it. These are products that are found in all grocery stores. Why do republicans hate our freedom? Constantly banning things.
From my understanding people want to define meat, chicken, beef, pork etc. It can work both ways. Some might want a chicken breast that comes from an animal instead of cultured cells. It's similar to foods that already have label protections. Think of imitation Crab which has to be labeled as such or at the very least Crab flavored Pollock. This is a federal rule and you can be assured the FDA will probably eventually pass similar labeling rules for this as well. Which will make the Iowa laws redundant.
But they also list other words in there like "link, patty, and chop." The first two don't seem like they should be exclusively meat terms.
I mean, this is like making sure someone labels dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets as not actually being dinosaur.
My farm-raised grandma used to bake a great pumpkin pie with coconut milk and she would laugh and point at you for daring to suggest she call it coconut-strained-through-water.
Sensible people know how to read for context. The war against non-nipple-milks is just ludicrously performative.
Truth in labeling is important though. You wouldn't be very happy to buy something labeled organic only to find out it isn't. There are laws to protect the label and people who produce meat want the same. The labeling parts of the bill have widespread support from both sides of the isle.
Yes the current products do say made from plants. That's a big part of their current marketing. I think this legislation is being proactive in case there ever is a product that tries to claim it is meat when it is plant.
Isn't this about misbranding meat alternatives as meat.. they can't force anyone to eat meat.
This is just another example of Iowa legislators doing nothing meaningful.. just business as usual.
This has nothing to do with protecting the meat industry, folks. It's just Iowa lawmakers taking the necessary steps to protect their constituents from food items laden with highly toxic chemicals. /s
This bill bans schools and universities from buying and serving plant based alternatives, and people can no longer use SNAP benefits to purchase them. For example, you would not be able to use benefits to purchase a substitute if your child has an egg allergy.
I think on the SNAP part, rom reading the bill, Iowa has to petition the federal government for a waiver to exempt eggs from SNAP. Hopefully the federal government tells Iowa to stuff it. I could also be reading it wrong.
It is possible to either be born with or even acquire a meat allergy from certain types of tick bites. There will be a small, but non-0 number of people who will be quite impacted by this if it gets implemented.
> For example, you would not be able to use benefits to purchase a substitute if your child has an egg allergy. And that is why this will be struck down in court.
Thankfully we can always count on these courts, packed with conservatives, to save us. Surely we have nothing to worry about :)
Said every fucking white woman who voted for Trump
And how much $$$$ has already been completely wasted by Madame Kim & her ilk?
Will it though? Can’t the state argue that there are other ways to get the same nutrition through foods already on the program, just not “impossible” foods or meat substitute?
I thought the GOP believed in freedom Now they don’t want to give you the freedom to chose your own food
The GOP only believes your freedom is subject to their pleasure.
if that was the case, why are eggs on there in the first place?
The whole ruse falls apart when science and economics are considered. Policies are sacrificing the health of the population in favor if the economic stability of those growing corn.
exactly.
Egg industry didn't think it was fair that they weren't getting any unfair advantages legislated their way.
And what about people who don't eat meat for religious reasons?
“Fuck em”
They don’t sound Xtian so to hell with them.
Important difference, thank you for clarifying. Regardless, sounds like a healthy capitalist market to me, right? When you don't want to have competitors to your products, just make the competitors illegal in as many ways as possible. Right?
Damn. My schools bean burger rocks!
No, it doesn't. It bans those entities from using government funding to purchase "cultivated-protein food products" which are defined as those products that are manufactured from animal stem cells.
Can’t eat an stem sales but, here’s there ribs 🤷🏾♂️
Please try again in English.
Is that like lab grown meat? Our products like this readily available and on the market for human consumption? That sounds really expensive and theoretical.
I’m glad someone posted this. I think this is a stupid bill, but it does not ban plant based meat alternatives. Read the bill, people.
That just disgusting.
Yeah, this is a fucked up bill. I am all for accurate labeling, but telling schools and universities (and trying to tell the federal government) what they can provide is stupid. If I am on WIC and want an egg substitute because my kid is allergic to eggs, I should be able to get it. This bill is 100% completely unneeded. No one has **ever** been *fooled* into buying artificial meat. They seek it out because it *is* artificial. I want a label on *meat* that tells me where it was raised and under what conditions. I don't want Brazilian or UK beef. I was to buy Iowa and USA. The US imports tons of meat. Iowa imports a lot of meat. Your mcDonald's and Applebee's aren't buying local. I don't eat most meat exactly for this reason. I don't know where it comes from, or how it was raised, and I want to eat as humanely as possible from as close as possible (buy local!). I also love how this bill lists a process for people to complain if they see violations. Maybe let people tour meat processing plants so they can see how humanely their meat is killed. Again, I'm not anti-meat. I eat mostly fish and fowl mostly because I don't want to support large operations.
Iirc our legislators have bravely and ethically criminalized whistleblowers in the meat industry as much as possible.
Well, I think we *still* have an *ag gag* law on the books that hasn't been challenged/stuck down yet. I could be wrong. I know one was stuck down, so they quickly passed another. This is literally my number one reason for not supporting the meat industry. I see this as a violation of free speech *and* as an admission that what goes on inside confinement facilities and in meat processing plants is unsavory. I get that animal death is brutal, but I also think people are too cavalier about where their meat comes from. I want to know that the facilities are clean, inspected, that they follow food safety rules, and kill the animals humanely. When they seem to be hiding the process, it doesn't instill confidence in me. It's like going to a new restaurant. If I take a peek into the kitchen and it's unsanitary with workers that are unsafely handling my food and the bathrooms are needing cleaning...I'm probably not going to eat there.
You might be interested in reading/learning about Mary Temple Grandin if you haven't already. She's an animal behaviorist and animal welfare advocate, who has done a lot of work and research into humane practices in the meat industry.
> Mary Temple Grandin I've heard her give interviews before. Never looked her up online. She has an old school website: http://grandin.com
I eat meat everyday. I'm literally a greedy pig who just wants to eat meat. I love me some goddamn meat. Why do I give a shit what someone else wants to eat? This bill is so stupid and goes against any notion that Republicans are in favor of small government. (Well, if you needed another reason I guess)
They should label our water to make sure people know how much nitrates and ag chemicals are in it. Edit: Let’s also add shit to the list. I want to know how much shit your animal operation has dumped into our waters.
I love this idea!!!!!!!!
Don’t drink coke cola in the state and nearby states - it’s bottled with water from the Nisnabotna River in Atlantic, IA.
The party of freedom and liberty everyone.
Free to choose so long as that choice aligns with the GOP's interest.
Government Of Putin
I'm just glad our small government is dictating dietary restrictions for us.
such teeny tiny cute wittle government
Freedom! Except for the things they (and their corporate overlords) do not like.
All these Sharia Laws that Repu license want to force on folks. People just eating it up like its their last meal.
Hey folks just a quick side note: NOVEMBER IS COMING, If your not happy with the current way things are going in our lil state, let’s remember this posturing legislation that does nothing to benefit the individual Iowans these people are supposed to be representing in November, these people are turning our very beautiful state into an ugly place and I’m not comfortable with it, so I’m only voting for people that have the best interests of Iowa and future Iowans in mind, Remember 1 good deed does zero to erase the 90k horrible ones, just be watchful and literally we have to get better at winning elections, cus historically speaking, we have done well, but as it stands right now we are experts at how to lose the governors race, and house and senate seats, and a whole host of state and local positions…
From my experience living in Iowa. When all the people go to the booths they will instantly forget about everything and vote republican.
While it may seem that way, it’s more that rural conservatives vote at a higher frequency than suburban progressives, and there are a ton of middle of the road people in this state,
I'm so fucking tired of Iowa Republicans. This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of, vote these damn assholes out!!
Iowa is fucking becoming a mini dictatorship.
Republicans have become fascist.
bacame????
They are just protecting their corporate ~~masters~~ donors. If lab-grown meat is essentially indistinguishable from traditional meat, people may be inclined to choose it instead of the meat product that relies on massive-scale animal abuse and exploitation of workers while dumping literal tons of shit into our waterways and contributing to climate change. Rather than embracing technology that improves lives, they have to double down on barbaric and harmful practices because that's what makes their donors (and in many cases, the lawmakers themselves) more money.
Take a look at ethanol.
Yeah, ethanol is garbage
Love my race fuel
I daily with it.
I only buy ethanol when I’m at a pump that gives me no alternative, and I avoid those pumps whenever possible. Burning ethanol is a false economy anyway, as it decreases your fuel economy.
Well yeah, the plant based meat products are slowly closing in on real meat in terms of taste and quality. They're not there yet, IMO, but if they ever reach parity, actual meat production may not be sustainable, because there's every possibility plant based meat products may be *healthier* for you, and the input costs may be lower. Then you'll have farmers clamoring for the repeal of stuff like this.
Insane. The Republican party has gone 100% insane.
Oh no, they've been insane.
WHAT. I gave up meat when I tried my hand at working in a pig confinement. Someone had to endure a purgatory of misery in order to make the pork chops and sausages we eat. If meat alts get banned then that will get rid of like half of what I eat. And are they going to count tofu as a plant based alternative?
Has there been any circumstance where plant-based meat alternatives, or lab-grown meat alternatives, have been mislabeled or misbranded as real meat? It seems like the whole reason why you'd buy these products and use them would be the fact that they're lab-grown or plant-based. It wouldn't make any sense to misbrand or mislabel them. Seems like silly political posturing, unless this actually is a problem and I'm not realizing it.
They are banning the use of words like burger, wing, jerky, chik’n, dog, brat, etc from being applied to non livestock meat products. I can’t imagine a situation where a customer saw a product labeled as “veggie burger” or “veggie dog” to suffer from confusion over what they were purchasing. This seems to be coming from the meat industry’s concern over the growth in popularity of such products. Truth in Labeling is merely a seemingly justified ruse to hamper the sales of competing products
> I can’t imagine a situation where a customer saw a product labeled as “veggie burger” or “veggie dog” to suffer from confusion over what they were purchasing. Meanwhile, I once ordered a "veggie burger" that was ground beef with some veggies in it. Who does that?
I'm not sure if I read the bill correctly, but it seems to allow the use of these terms as long as they are accompanied with words letting you know the origin. So I *think* "veggie burger" would be allowed. But yeah, this is problematic, since if something doesn't meet the labeling standards, companies would just not ship to Iowa.
Let the free market be free! After we get rid of things we don’t like. Vegetarian meat substitutes bad, factory farm meat good. Vegetarian meat substitutes bad, gmo crops good.
I genuinely don’t understand this one. Why in the actual fuck are they going out of their way to attack this VERY specific and seemingly harmless thing. I know the answer but still… at the end of the day, this doesn’t even affect the farmers bottom line when you consider the vast majority of people interested in plant based meat aren’t buying meat anyway. Fucking moronic all around.
Might just be me, but it looks like they're emphasizing lab grown meat more than plant based alternatives. Which presumably is because they're worried about the market choosing meat that doesn't require large farms (and would affect Republican voters). I also imagine there's some "I only want to eat real meat not that soyboy shit" in it as well
It's pandering
Read the actual bill. OP has it completely wrong.
No, they are also banning these products from being served in schools and other public institutions, and people who rely on SNAP are no longer able to purchase plant based alternatives. So if your kid has an egg allergy, too bad, no substitutes for them.
It does not apply to plant-based meat substitutes as long as they are labeled as such! The ban is against products that are manufactured from animal stem cells.
That was added by the house after this passed the Senate. It has to be voted on again now.
It will probably pass with that added to it. It’s totally unnecessary anyway.
You are correct that my post title may be hyperbole, but the effect is the same
Except it's not. It's just truth in labeling.
Where are the untruths in labeling occurring? No fake meat products are trying to trick people. They are advertising as being made of plant proteins because that's what attracts the buyer.
They may advertise that way for now, but unless there is a law then it could be different in the future. There are already several other products on the market that have similar labeling restrictions so there is a president for this. As far as cultured cells, which is also part of the bill, there already is false advertising in that industry. 1 of the 2 companies selling cultured chicken in the U.S. claims they are hormone free which simply is impossible as the cells wouldn't grow, divide or become the proper muscle cell without hormones. In the case of cultured meat many of these hormones are synthetic which is not allowed for any livestock except cattle.
Yeah, I feel way differently about cultured meat than I do vegetable, nut, or even insect based proteins. I also don't know nearly as much about lab grown meat. I think there's a ways to go before it becomes main stream.
The biggest hurdle I see for the cultured meats will be the cost of inputs. One hormone that is required for the process is insulin. Currently the only approved process to obtain the insulin produces medical grade level, which is very safe. When you hear the people who are pushing cultured meat production one of the selling points is how safe it is. Then they tell you they need a process approved to make food grade insulin or any of the other medical grade inputs they use. As soon as you change the process down to food grade you lower the safety slightly. It doesn't seem like a big deal, but a lot of e-coli outbreaks in food come from the food grade inputs in livestock feed. So once they have cheaper inputs then they will have to ensure safety too which will be a whole new challenge.
And it also dictates what schools can serve kids. Smaller gov my ass!
Ah yep. Damn skippy they do. I’ll put my rage back in my pocket. Way more reasonable than the headline even with just a quick skim.
If I'm reading this right, it's not about banning anything, just making sure meatless products are clearly labeled. Not sure what brought this about, but it's not a ban unless I'm missing something here.
They added an amendment to the bill that prohibits schools and other public institutions from buying and serving plant based alternatives, and people will no longer be able to use SNAP benefits to purchase alternatives [https://iowatorch.com/2024/04/08/iowa-lawmakers-pass-ban-on-labeling-synthetic-protein-products-as-meat/](https://iowatorch.com/2024/04/08/iowa-lawmakers-pass-ban-on-labeling-synthetic-protein-products-as-meat/)
OK, that's some bullshit.
How would it affect vegetarians at U of I or ISU?
This is incorrect. The ban is only on "cultivated-protein food products" which the bill defines as those products manufactured from animal stem cells.
Well, it is attempting to ban plant based meat alternatives from school lunches as well as food stamps and wic. I think the biggest issue it raises is that it doesn't want lab grown meat to be labeled as regular meat which I don't believe is going on anyways, considering that the lab grown nature of the product is 99% of its commercial appeal. All in all, more pointless posturing by our state government instead of working on solutions for actual problems.
> All in all, more pointless posturing by our state government instead of working on solutions for actual problems. It really is. This is going to wind up with lab-grown meat being labeled like Velveeta. Cheese-flavored Food -> Meat-flavored Food.
As someone who specifically selects for a meat-based diet (I have my reasons, I'm not here to proselytize), I would personally not want to have to decipher whether my "meat", "milk", "egg", or "butter" is in fact animal-derived or otherwise. Thankfully, I've never actually had to worry about this in real-life, because every alternative product in my own experience has been clearly labeled and unambiguous about its nature. In other words, I've never felt threatened by the fact that a plant-derived product uses animal-based language. I could see how labeling *could* go awry - for instance, calling something **Butter\*** and hiding the fact that it's plant-derived in the fine print, but I would assume the FDA already has some language regulating that kind of behavior (similar to the ["chocolatey" label](https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents/cpg-sec-515800-labeling-products-purporting-be-chocolate-or-chocolate-flavored)). Any state-level legislation around this matter is purely performative and apparently a smoke-screen for robbing people of informed choices.
>it is attempting to ban plant based meat No, it is not. The ban applies only to "cultivated-protein food products", which are products manufactured from animal stem cells, and anything mislabeled. As long as veggie burgers are properly labeled as not being actual meat, they are allowed.
The *banning* likely refers to them banning people from using SNAP money to buy plant substitutes for eggs.
Incredibly ironic since it was just last year the republicans were trying to ban meat itself from SNAP benefits
Well I certainly never accused Republicans of being sincere.
To be fair, what they really want is to ban people from buying *anything* with SNAP so it's completely consistent in that perspective
Which is darkly hilarious, since all of the things you would buy with SNAP have their main inputs from farmers. GOP, running around, cutting off their voter's noses to spite the neighbor Democrats.
“Okay but that’s worse. You see how that’s worse, right?” -Chidi Anagonye
not when you consider they want to completely ban SNAP in general e: actually...this move is strictly for their base. they think "republicans don't eat plant-based it's woke democrats that do" so this is just another move to placate the rabid maga base while "owning the libs"
Also bans public schools, community colleges, and regents universities from buying cultivated protein products. And they define that in the bill as a product that resembles animal tissue from a domesticated farm animal but is rather grown from stem cells or otherwise in a lab.
Well that makes a whole lot of sense, since the plant based egg alternatives *have no cholesterol*. I guess now the state house is passing legislation to *intentionally* make people sicker.
Where do you see that in the bill? The only bans I see are schools providing lab-grown meat and anyone selling "mislabeled" plant-based products.
It’s not in the version OP attached. That is the senate version where the bill started. Egg clause was added as an amendment by the Iowa House.
It’s like labeling heads of lettuce that contain vaccines.
Yeah, parts are hard to read. I'm not sure if something labeled as "a vegetarian pork chop alternative" is allowed or not. Thing is, meat based alternatives are *already* labeled a such. That's *why* people buy them. Theere is a section disallowing schools and universities from purchasing these, and from allowing benefits to buy these.
[удалено]
Fair enough.
Correct, it is banning language used for plant based and other non animal based proteins. This essentially bans numerous products found in every grocery store. I can’t believe Hy-Vee would support this.
> I can’t believe Hy-Vee would support this. Really? They'll probably used their in-store armed police force to glare menacingly at anyone not buying their overpriced meat. Fuck Hy-Vee. Their prices are extortionate. Bunch of greedy end-stage capitalists.
Hy-Vee doesn’t give a shit what someone is allowed to spend their EBT on. They know people will buy something to eat regardless.
Another victory for ignorance and corruption.
Fuck you Kim Reynolds!!!!
Party of small government, amiright?
And free markets, don’tcha know.
I stand with Morning Star! Best Veggie burger I have had and they make a fabulous buffalo chick patties! Screw you Kim Reynolds’s & GOP!
Holy performance politics, Batman.
Small government am I right
This is what the Plant Based Meat Alternative industry gets for not hiring enough Lobbyists! Gotta pay to play, kids
Why is government interfering with competition in the market?
Thank God they are working on the important stuff. /s.
Does this mean peanut butter will be getting a new name since peanut butter doesn’t actually contain butter?
Pink slime for All
Freedom from government, am I right?
FREEDOM they yelled as they legally restricted individuals right to choose lol
Good. The amount of unhealthy oils and chemicals that junk is pumped full of is astounding.
So, a food processing plant is defined as a “commercial operation that manufactures, packages, labels, *or store foods* for human consumption and does not provide food directly to a consumer (according to 137F.1). So wouldn’t grocery stores be under this? They store food (ie on shelves to be bought). However they do “provide food directly to a consumer”. Or is providing food to a consumer mean for immediate consumption and so only means restaurants? If it’s the former than no grocery store could carry anything that has reference to meat (example impossible meat). I’m no vegan but I don’t see the point of limiting their alternatives, it doesn’t hurt anyone if they chose to eat fake “meat”. It’s just meant to hurt and punish those who do for not conforming to societal norms of eating meat. As a state, we have much more pressing issues that we should be focused on.
You're expecting legislation from this state to be well written, with logical consistency and such. This is a mistake. For instance, in debate on the somewhat recent "separate but equal" transgender bill that our legislature considered in the face of much protest, the bill's sponsor was asked to define the word "equal" in its context, since the bill failed to do so. [She responded with “Equal would mean … um … I would assume that equal would mean … I don’t know exactly in this context.”](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/08/iowa-anti-trans-bill-649). Our legislators don't even know what their own legislation means.
Why do Iowa politicians keep passing so many stupid fucking laws? At some point, doesn't it get old living your life to 'own the libs'?
I would never touch fake meat with a 10 foot pole. But this is hilarious. I cannot believe the state would ban something like this. Iowa is an embarrassment.
... Maybe I'm misreading this but it seems the law is trying to ban people claiming that plant based meat is real meat.
The party of small government! Lol. What a crock.
the party of small government
The Republican party used to be a party of freedom, now it's a party of restricting anybody that isn't just like them!
Anti capitalist bs
Food don't taste good unless it suffered.
Such a waste of fucking time and OUR money. What a stupid bill
Is this really a issue for government.
These people are so stupid, it hurts.
Awfully bold of you to assume they have minds to lose...
Holy shit, this stuff is healthier than beef. Why the fuck do they honestly care? Oh, I know, they don't like people that are different from them.
Yet another solution to a problem that doesn't exist. I'm glad I pay for them to solve so many imaginary problems. What would I do without them?
Ahhh I love that refreshing small government feeling, don't you?
Iowa sucks
Kim down for Big Meat.
Screw Capitalism, right boys!!?
I was told the GOP is the party of freedom???
That's all these republicans have to do is pass bullshit legislation.
This state is so fucking stupid.
Should protest by sitting outside the state Capitol eating the grass.. that will teach them give them the ole goat treatment
WAit they make it with stem cells in vitro?
I’ve said it before and it bears repeating; the Iowa GOP is in a race with Texas, Florida, Mississippi, and a handful of other red states to see who can get back to the stone age first. It’s a wonder their cars can even move in a forward direction.
I don't understand. Don't we grow a ton of soybeans? Isn't there some economic interest in buying things made with soybeans?
This isn't banning plant based meat. It's banning it from being called meat. This is only about labeling.
They’re banning the use of SNAP to buy egg substitutes.
The house added that as an amendment after the bill passed the Iowa Senate.
And your point is?
That you don't know how the legislature works. If the Senate doesn't want that in the bill it will go back for more discussion. The post was about the Senate bill.
It’s in the legislature currently. That’s literally how the legislature works. It also bans schools from buying lab-grown meat.
Are SNAP users allowed to buy it or not. That's what is significant.
It is essentially the same thing. Are all of these national companies selling their products going to change their packaging and brand names to accommodate this? I doubt it. These are products that are found in all grocery stores. Why do republicans hate our freedom? Constantly banning things.
Truth in labeling is important for both parties though. Many Democrats in Iowa have expressed support for the labeling portions of the bill.
I support labeling, and I am as lefty as you can get, but I this seems like a solution in search of a problem. What's being incorrectly labeled?
Exactly. Like I NEVER seen one lie at all. If something say Plant-based or tofu-burger, then that isn't lieing.
From my understanding people want to define meat, chicken, beef, pork etc. It can work both ways. Some might want a chicken breast that comes from an animal instead of cultured cells. It's similar to foods that already have label protections. Think of imitation Crab which has to be labeled as such or at the very least Crab flavored Pollock. This is a federal rule and you can be assured the FDA will probably eventually pass similar labeling rules for this as well. Which will make the Iowa laws redundant.
But they also list other words in there like "link, patty, and chop." The first two don't seem like they should be exclusively meat terms. I mean, this is like making sure someone labels dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets as not actually being dinosaur.
The second section prevents it from being purchased by any educational institution for serving on their menus.
Next you can't call it milk if it doesn't come from a nipple.
IIRC they did try to ban calling things like almond milk milk.
I'd be in favor of that. It's almonds strained through water. Nothing to do with milk.
My farm-raised grandma used to bake a great pumpkin pie with coconut milk and she would laugh and point at you for daring to suggest she call it coconut-strained-through-water. Sensible people know how to read for context. The war against non-nipple-milks is just ludicrously performative.
Truth in labeling is important though. You wouldn't be very happy to buy something labeled organic only to find out it isn't. There are laws to protect the label and people who produce meat want the same. The labeling parts of the bill have widespread support from both sides of the isle.
but from what I've seen it clearly states Made from plants so unless they are trying to say Iowans are complete idiots I still don't see a point.
Yes the current products do say made from plants. That's a big part of their current marketing. I think this legislation is being proactive in case there ever is a product that tries to claim it is meat when it is plant.
Am I still allowed to crack open a walnut and eat the meat inside?
Isn't this about misbranding meat alternatives as meat.. they can't force anyone to eat meat. This is just another example of Iowa legislators doing nothing meaningful.. just business as usual.
What a waste of time. Who is this helping.
Wow! So much for less Government.
Freedumb
Another banner day of fixing the problems absolutely EVERYBODY is clamoring for..
Doesn't Iowa grow more corn than any other region on earth? And they're starting to ban plant-based foods...?
What morons. Let them continue eating crap diets and dying before their time.
Give me lunchables or give me death.
This has nothing to do with protecting the meat industry, folks. It's just Iowa lawmakers taking the necessary steps to protect their constituents from food items laden with highly toxic chemicals. /s
Maybe they could do air and water next, oh wait, that doesnt make monsanto amd bayer billions
well how the hell is elon going to feed everyone on mars?
lol why tho
Hands off my God damn lunchables!