UPSIDE Foods wins first-round victory in challenge to Florida ban on cultivated meat
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Today, Chief Judge Mark Walker of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida granted UPSIDE Foods, Inc. an important first-round victory in its challenge to Florida’s first-in-the-nation ban on cultivated meat. In a ruling released this afternoon, Judge Walker denied an attempt by the government to dismiss UPSIDE’s lawsuit, meaning that the case will continue moving forward in the trial court.
Unlike conventional meat, which is produced by raising and slaughtering animals, cultivated meat is grown in controlled conditions from cells extracted from an animal. In 2023, UPSIDE gained approval from the FDA and the USDA to distribute a cultivated chicken product in interstate commerce. In response, agricultural interests in Florida and other states lobbied for bans on these innovative products. Florida’s ban went into effect on July 1, 2024.
Dr. Uma Valeti, CEO of UPSIDE, said, “UPSIDE is not looking to replace conventional meat, which will always have a place at the table. All we are asking for is the right to compete, so that Floridians can try our product and see that it is possible to have delicious meat without the need for slaughtering animals. Today’s ruling is an important step towards securing that right.”
Represented by the nonprofit law firm the Institute for Justice (IJ), UPSIDE filed its challenge to Florida’s ban on cultivated meat in August 2024. The lawsuit alleges that Florida’s ban on cultivated meat violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution because it was enacted to shield in-state producers of conventional meat from competition from out-of-state producers of cultivated meat. The lawsuit also argues that Florida’s law is preempted under federal laws that regulate the interstate market for meat and poultry products.
IJ Senior Attorney Paul Sherman said, “One of the primary reasons for the enactment of the Constitution was to secure a national common market. Today’s ruling is an important vindication of the principle that states cannot close their borders to innovative out-of-state competition, and a warning to other states that are considering banning cultivated meat.”