Montana has just become the latest state to crack down on the lab-grown fake “meat” products championed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.
Several U.S. states are now pushing back against Gates’s “lab-grown meat” products amid growing concerns about the risks they pose to public health.
Currently, there are no federal regulations governing fake “meat” products destined for the American food supply.
However, some states are now cracking down on the controversial “foods.”
This week, Montana’s Republican Governor Greg Gianforte announced that he had signed a bill into law banning the manufacturing and sale of “lab-grown meat.”
In a post on X, Gov. Gianforte wrote:
“So-called ‘lab-grown meat’ has no place in Montana.
“By signing HB 401 into law, I am proud to defend our way of life and the hardworking Montana ranchers who produce the best beef in the world.”
So-called "lab-grown meat" has no place in Montana.
By signing HB 401 into law, I am proud to defend our way of life and the hardworking Montana ranchers who produce the best beef in the world. pic.twitter.com/INc2WuAvNI
— Governor Greg Gianforte (@GovGianforte) May 13, 2025
While some argue that state-level bans harm the free market, local lawmakers see them as part of a larger fight to preserve Western values.
In a statement, Republican Montana State Rep. Braxton Mitchell said:
“Agriculture is our state’s number one industry, and this bill takes a clear stand to protect our ranchers and our food supply.
“We won’t let synthetic products with misleading labels undercut the hard work of Montana’s farm and ranch families.”
Montana is now the fifth state in the nation to pass legislation prohibiting lab-cultivated proteins.
Florida and Alabama have also enacted laws to ban “lab-grown” meat for human consumption.
Arizona, Nebraska, and Tennessee have also now proposed legislation to ban any lab-grown “meat” products from their food supplies.
In January, Nebraska’s Republican Governor Jim Pillen announced a new legislative proposal to ban lab-grown “meat” from being produced in or sold in stores across the Cornhusker State.
During a news conference, Pillen told reporters:
“It’s important we get on the offense so that Nebraska farmers and ranchers are not undermined.”
The push comes after concurrent Biden-era policies that simultaneously created a loophole for safety testing while prioritizing lab-cultivated proteins as “Climate-Friendly” ahead of labeling requirements.
The fake “meat” products are not exactly a drug, but not necessarily food harvested in nature.
In 2019, Congress directed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a formal agreement delineating each agency’s responsibilities for regulating lab-made or “cellular-cultivated” fake “meat.”
By early 2021, the Biden administration prioritized lab-made products as a “Climate-Smart” agricultural alternative to real meat.
The Biden admin promised a fast track to manufacturers Good Meat Inc. and the Bill Gates-backed Upside Foods.
By 2023, the FDA had issued a “No Questions Asked” approval for lab-cultivated “chicken cells with characteristics of fibroblasts.”
While the USDA does not regulate processed food, the agreement stipulated that the agency’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) would be handed off regulatory oversight “at the point of harvest.”
This meant that the USDA’s regulatory role would be limited to “labeling and sanitation.”
This labeling requirement, which has yet to materialize, has state lawmakers pumping the brakes.
Since early 2020, FSIS has gone round after round with “stakeholders” about what to call this petri-dish creation.
During the last round, stakeholders warned the FSIS that transparent labeling would “hamper innovation” and “violate the First Amendment.”
To date, the USDA has not fulfilled its regulatory role, according to the delineated agreement.
Thankfully, the FDA didn’t uphold its end of the bargain with fast-tracked “No Questions” approvals.
READ MORE – FDA Fast-Tracks Bill Gates’ ‘Replicon’ mRNA ‘Vaccine’ for ‘Bird Flu’
