Three-and-a-half years after it received a cattle group’s petition to define “meat” and “beef” as referring only to the flesh of food-bearing animals, the USDA said it has no authority over the labeling of alternative proteins from plants and insects. The FDA regulates those products, said the Food Safety and Inspection Service, and when it “is made aware that a non-animal product is being labeled as ‘meat’ or ‘beef,’ FSIS refers such information to FDA.”
The U.S. Cattlemen’s Association included the alternative proteins alongside the major target of its petition — cell-cultured meat, which is moving closer to market. “Products that are labeled as ‘meat’ should be limited to those that are derived from the tissue or flesh of an animal harvested in the traditional manner,” it said in the petition. “This includes synthetic products from plant, insects and other non-animal components, as well any product grown in labs from animal cells.”
In its final response to the petition, FSIS rejected the suggestion that it could control labeling of non-meat products, saying it “does not have jurisdiction.” As for as cell-cultured meat, FSIS said it was addressing the issue through the federal rule-making process. Public comments will be accepted through Nov. 2 on how cell-cultured meats should be labeled. The USCA petition is discussed as part of the Sept. 2 notice of proposed rule-making. Some 6,000 comments were filed on the petition.
To read USDA’s final response to the petition, click here.
To read the 2018 petition and related documents, click here.
An Ag Insider story about the USDA request for comments on labeling is available here.