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Texas requires 'clear labeling' of plant-based foods starting Sept. 1

May 30, 2023 - from New Hope Network

"Texas Gov. Greg Abbott recently signed a bill requiring clear labeling of analogs of meat, poultry, seafood and eggs, as well as cultivated meat.

"The law, which takes effect Sept. 1, requires plant-based or fermented analogs of meat, poultry, seafood and eggs to have a prominent label with type at least the same size as the text around it labeling products as “analogue,” “meatless,” “plant-based,” “made from plants” or with similar clarifying language. A similar requirement in the state law for cultivated meat requires that any food product made from harvesting animal cells replicated to produce tissue have a similar label. The bill suggests the label say “cell-cultured,” “lab-grown” or similar language.

"What happens when Texas’s law takes effect on Sept. 1 is an open question. It seems many companies are already complying with the new law. Meat, dairy and egg analog companies already include labeling that specifically says their products are made from plants or another substance. These companies have said they want consumers to know their products are not meat, an attribute that is a selling point for some shoppers.

"As some of these laws started to take effect, advocacy groups including the Good Food Institute, legal organizations such as the Animal Legal Defense Fund and plant-based meat companies including Tofurky, have fought back in the courtroom. So far, litigation in Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas has yielded favorable decisions for meat alternative companies, while cases in Missouri and Oklahoma are pending.

"In the cases that have ended in decisions, courts have ruled the laws do not apply to any current company making meat analogs. The products on the market today have clear labeling, rulings have found. In Arkansas, the court found the law infringes on plant-based meat companies’ First Amendment rights “to convey meaningful, helpful information to consumers about the products they are purchasing.”