Ask FDA about plant-based ‘meat,’ says USDA
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."
If the menu calls it vegetarian, people don’t want it
When researcher Linda Bacon showed 750 adults in Britain menus that included two plant-based entrees, they were half as likely to chose them if they were listed in a section called "Vegetarian Dishes." In a World Resources Institute blog, Bacon says the grouping "highlights the lack of meat or fish" and reduces interest for a variety of reasons.
The future of ‘meat’: A Q&A with Bruce Friedrich
Bruce Friedrich is executive director of the Good Food Institute, which collaborates with scientists, entrepreneurs, and investors to develop and promote plant-based alternatives to meat, milk and eggs. FERN’s Kristina Johnson called Friedrich to ask him about the future of plant-based proteins.