Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has banned lab-grown meat, saying he will “save our beef” from the “global elite” and its “authoritarian plans”.

“Florida is fighting back against the global elite’s plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a petri dish or bugs,” Mr DeSantis said in a statement.

The first-in-the-nation law prohibits anyone from selling or distributing lab-grown meat in Florida.

Similar efforts are under way in Alabama, Arizona and Tennessee.

Lab-grown or “cultivated” meat was first cleared for consumption in the US in 2022.

The process of making cultivated meat involves extracting cells from an animal, which are then fed with nutrients such as proteins, sugars and fats. The end product is genetically indistinguishable from traditionally produced meat.

Studies have suggested that eating cultivated meat can cut carbon emissions and water usage, and free up land for nature, compared to eating traditionally produced meat.

  • variants@possumpat.io
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    6 months ago

    The thing I never got about the plant based burger patties is they try to make it taste like a scrappy beef patty instead of making ot taste good in its own flavor. Like why can’t it just be its own thing like how a chicken sandwich is different than a beef burger

    • chetradley@lemmy.world
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      6 months ago

      The idea is that you can quickly and easily replicate a flavor you’re used to and remove the animal element. You can also buy it and have a good idea what it will taste like.

      But it’s not healthy! Yeah no kidding, when I eat a burger it’s generally not for the health benefits.

      • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        Are you referring to plant-based burgers? That would definitely apply to Beyond and Impossible as they add way too much coconut oil, and salt. In other words they’re unhealthy for some of the same reasons animal flesh is unhealthy, although they are still less harmful than their animal counterparts just by lacking the animal proteins.

        • chetradley@lemmy.world
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          6 months ago

          Pretty much. Although I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t add salt to a burger anyway, and the beyond/impossible burgers don’t need any extra, so I don’t think the sodium content is a super fair comparison.

    • RBWells@lemmy.world
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      6 months ago

      As others already noted, you can get veggie burgers that taste like veggie burgers. I actually order black bean burgers with bacon and cheese and jalapenos at the cafe at my work, they are so good. Like it much better with black bean burger than hamburger.

    • djsoren19@yiffit.net
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      6 months ago

      I mean, you’re basically describing a black bean burger. The real question is why we still can’t buy like, pre-packaged black bean burger mix or ready made patties easily.

      • zalgotext@sh.itjust.works
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        6 months ago

        You can, at least in my local grocery stores. Black bean burger patties have been available in the frozen section for years.

        They’re a bit of a rip off because they’re way more expensive than a can of beans + spices, and probably an order of magnitude more expensive than dry beans + spices, but they’re usually around the same price as the premade beef patties, by weight.

        • djsoren19@yiffit.net
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          6 months ago

          Damn, guess I just live in an area where they’re not as common then. They’re definitely a rip-off, but then so are all pre-made patties. You pay a premium for the convenience.

          • interrobang@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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            6 months ago

            If you live near Aldi’s, they have a frozen black bean patty available sometimes. I can’t tell the rhythm or reason to when they stock it, but they are reasonably priced and pretty tasty if ya see em

          • variants@possumpat.io
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            6 months ago

            I don’t think ive ever heard of a black bean burger I’ll have to see if I can make some one day

    • fine_sandy_bottom
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      6 months ago

      Marketing. There’s a dramatically larger target market if it tastes like beef.

    • MilitantVegan@lemmy.world
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      6 months ago

      Some of them are, and it doesn’t take long (maybe a year) on a plant-based lifestyle to start naturally preferring more plant-forward burgers.

    • Magnetic_dud
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      6 months ago

      It depends how they make them. Some plant based burgers are just made with scraps from soy milk production, look like expired meat and taste like polystyrene or worse while the impossible burger it’s difficult to distinguish with a blind test: the flavor, the texture and the appearance are extremely similar. They even have the fake blood in the middle