A Bill for an Act
Page 1, Line 101Concerning cell-cultivated meat, and, in connection
Page 1, Line 102therewith, prohibiting the misbranding of
Page 1, Line 103cell-cultivated meat as a meat product and requiring
Page 1, Line 104cell-cultivated meat to be clearly labeled as
Page 1, Line 105cell-cultivated meat.
Bill Summary
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://leg.colorado.gov.)
The bill prohibits food processing plants from selling or offering for sale cell-cultivated meat that is misbranded as a meat product. The bill also requires food processing plants to clearly label cell-cultivated meat as cell-cultivated meat.
The department of public health and environment (department) is required to inspect food at a food processing plant if the department has reasonable cause to believe that:
- Cell-cultivated meat sold or offered for sale by the plant is misbranded as a meat product; or
- The plant is failing to label cell-cultivated meat as required.
If, after an inspection, the department has reasonable cause to believe that a food processing plant is selling or offering for sale cell-cultivated meat that is misbranded as a meat product, or is failing to label cell-cultivated meat as required, the department may issue a stop order. Upon being issued the stop order, the food processing plant shall not sell the product or offer it for sale until the department determines whether it is misbranded or unlabeled in violation of the bill.
If the department determines that a food processing plant is selling or offering for sale cell-cultivated meat that is misbranded as a meat product, or is failing to label cell-cultivated meat as required, the department may issue an embargo order requiring the food processing plant to dispose of the cell-cultivated meat by means other than by sale to purchasers in Colorado.
The department, the attorney general, or the district attorney in the district where cell-cultivated meat is being offered for sale or sold may petition the district court to enforce a stop order or an embargo order.
The department may adopt rules as necessary to implement the bill.
Page 2, Line 1Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
Page 2, Line 2SECTION 1. Legislative declaration. (1) The general assembly finds that:
Page 2, Line 3(a) For generations, Colorado stock growers have raised
Page 2, Line 4high-quality meat products that feed families across the state and the nation;
Page 2, Line 5(b) Livestock production is not just an industry in Colorado; it is a proud tradition woven into the very fabric of the state's history; and
Page 2, Line 6(c) Agriculture remains the lifeblood of rural Colorado, driving
Page 2, Line 7local economies while preserving a rich heritage that rural Coloradans
Page 2, Line 8embrace with pride.
Page 3, Line 1(2) Now, therefore, the general assembly declares that a labeling
Page 3, Line 2requirement on the sale or distribution of cell-cultivated meat in the state
Page 3, Line 3is necessary to eliminate any potential for deceptive trade practices and
Page 3, Line 4preserve the free market choice that all Colorado consumers deserve when it comes to their protein options.
Page 3, Line 5SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 25-5-411, amend (1) introductory portion; and add (1)(q) and (1)(r) as follows:
Page 3, Line 625-5-411. Definitions of "misbranding". (1) A food
shall bePage 3, Line 7(q) If the food is cell-cultivated meat or contains
Page 3, Line 8cell-cultivated meat and is misbranded as a meat product in violation of section 25-5-428; or
Page 3, Line 9(r) If the food is cell-cultivated meat or contains
Page 3, Line 10cell-cultivated meat and is not clearly labeled as cell-cultivated meat in violation of section 25-5-428.
Page 3, Line 11SECTION 3. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 25-5-428 as follows:
Page 3, Line 1225-5-428. Misbranding of cell-cultivated meat as meat product
Page 3, Line 13prohibited - labeling of cell-cultivated meat required - definitions -
Page 3, Line 14inspections - stop orders - embargo orders - enforcement - rules.
Page 3, Line 15(1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
Page 3, Line 16(a) "Agricultural food animal" means:
Page 3, Line 17(I) A domesticated animal belonging to the bovine, caprine, ovine, or porcine species; or
Page 3, Line 18(II) A live domestic chicken or turkey.
Page 3, Line 19(b) "Cell-cultivated meat" means food having one or more
Page 4, Line 1sensory attributes that resembles a type of tissue originating
Page 4, Line 2from an agricultural food animal but that, in lieu of being
Page 4, Line 3derived from meat processing, is derived from manufacturing
Page 4, Line 4cells, in which one or more stem cells are initially isolated from
Page 4, Line 5an agricultural food animal, are grown in vitro, and may be manipulated as part of a manufacturing operation.
Page 4, Line 6(c) "Food processing plant" means a commercial operation
Page 4, Line 7that manufactures, packages, labels, or stores food for human consumption and does not provide food directly to a consumer.
Page 4, Line 8(d) "Identifying meat term" means any word or phrase that
Page 4, Line 9states, indicates, suggests, or describes a meat product,
Page 4, Line 10regardless of whether the word or phrase is used individually,
Page 4, Line 11as a portmanteau, or as a compound word. "Identifying meat term" includes:
Page 4, Line 12(I) A common name for the species of the agricultural
Page 4, Line 13food animal subject to slaughter and processing, including a
Page 4, Line 14calf or cow, chicken, goat or kid, hog or pig, poultry, lamb or sheep, or turkey;
Page 4, Line 15(II) A common name for a characteristic of a species of the
Page 4, Line 16agricultural food animal subject to slaughter and processing based on age, breed, or sex;
Page 4, Line 17(III) Beef or veal; broiler, fryer, poulet, or yearling; cabrito or chevon; lamb or mutton; or pork;
Page 4, Line 18(IV) A common name used to describe a major cut of the
Page 4, Line 19meat of an agricultural food animal slaughtered and processed, including a major meat cut specified in 9 CFR 317.344;
Page 4, Line 20(V) A poultry product such as breast, drumstick, giblet, thigh, or wing;
Page 5, Line 1(VI) The common name of an organ or offal, including gizzard, heart, liver, kidney, or tongue; and
Page 5, Line 2(VII) Any other common name that a reasonable
Page 5, Line 3purchaser would immediately and exclusively associate with a
Page 5, Line 4meat product prepared for sale in normal commercial channels,
Page 5, Line 5such as bacon, baloney, bologna, bone, brat or bratwurst,
Page 5, Line 6brisket, burger or hamburger, butt, chop, chuck, cold cut,
Page 5, Line 7cutlet, filet, flat iron, frank or frankfurter, ham, hock, hot
Page 5, Line 8dog, jerky, liverwurst, loin, London broil, lunch meat, New York
Page 5, Line 9strip, pepperoni, porterhouse, ribeye, roast, rib or sparerib,
Page 5, Line 10salami, sausage, shank, sirloin, tenderloin, or a comparable word or phrase the department adopts by rule.
Page 5, Line 11(e) "Meat processing" means the handling, preparation,
Page 5, Line 12and slaughter of an agricultural food animal; the dressing of
Page 5, Line 13its carcass; or the cutting, storage, and packaging of its tissue or other parts as food.
Page 5, Line 14(f) "Meat product" means food derived from meat processing.
Page 5, Line 15(g) (I) "Misbranded as a meat product" means that cell-cultivated meat or a food containing cell-cultivated meat:
Page 5, Line 16(A) Is sold or offered for sale by a food processing plant; and
Page 5, Line 17(B) Bears a label that includes an identifying meat term.
Page 5, Line 18(II) Notwithstanding subsection (1)(g)(I) of this section,
Page 5, Line 19cell-cultivated meat or a food containing cell-cultivated meat
Page 5, Line 20is not misbranded as a meat product if:
Page 6, Line 1(A) The label includes a conspicuous and prominent
Page 6, Line 2qualifying term in close proximity to the identifying meat term; or
Page 6, Line 3(B) The product contains no more than a trace amount of cell-cultivated meat, as determined by the department.
Page 6, Line 4(h) "Qualifying term" means a word, compound word, or
Page 6, Line 5phrase that would clearly disclose to a reasonable purchaser
Page 6, Line 6of meat products from a food processing plant that a food is not
Page 6, Line 7a meat product. "Qualifying term" includes "cell-cultivated",
Page 6, Line 8"cell-cultured", "grown in a lab", "imitation", "lab-created",
Page 6, Line 9"lab-grown", "meat free", "meatless", and a comparable word or phrase adopted by the department by rule.
Page 6, Line 10(2) A food processing plant shall not sell or offer for sale cell-cultivated meat that is misbranded as a meat product.
Page 6, Line 11(3) A food processing plant that sells or offers for sale
Page 6, Line 12cell-cultivated meat shall ensure that each unit of the
Page 6, Line 13cell-cultivated meat bears a label that describes the product as "cell-cultivated meat" in clear, legible type.
Page 6, Line 14(4) The department shall inspect an inventory of food
Page 6, Line 15offered for sale or sold at a food processing plant pursuant to
Page 6, Line 16section 25-5-421 if the department has reasonable cause to believe that:
Page 6, Line 17(a) Cell-cultivated meat sold or offered for sale by the food processing plant is misbranded as a meat product; or
Page 6, Line 18(b) The food processing plant is failing to label
Page 6, Line 19cell-cultivated meat as required by subsection (3) of this
Page 6, Line 20section.
Page 7, Line 1(5) (a) If, after an inspection, the department has
Page 7, Line 2reasonable cause to believe that a food processing plant is
Page 7, Line 3selling or offering for sale cell-cultivated meat that is
Page 7, Line 4misbranded as a meat product, or is failing to label
Page 7, Line 5cell-cultivated meat as cell-cultivated meat, the department
Page 7, Line 6may issue a stop order. After receiving the stop order, the food
Page 7, Line 7processing plant shall not sell the product or offer it for sale
Page 7, Line 8until the department determines whether the food is misbranded
Page 7, Line 9as a meat product or improperly unlabeled. The deparment may
Page 7, Line 10require the food processing plant to hold the product and secure it from purchase.
Page 7, Line 11(b) If the department determines that cell-cultivated
Page 7, Line 12meat sold or offered for sale by a food processing plant is
Page 7, Line 13misbranded as a meat product, or that a food processing plant
Page 7, Line 14has failed to label cell-cultivated meat as required by
Page 7, Line 15subsection (3) of this section, the department may issue an
Page 7, Line 16embargo order requiring the food processing plant to dispose of
Page 7, Line 17the cell-cultivated meat by means other than by sale to purchasers in Colorado.
Page 7, Line 18(c) The department, the attorney general, or the district
Page 7, Line 19attorney in the district where cell-cultivated meat is being
Page 7, Line 20offered for sale or sold may petition the district court to
Page 7, Line 21enforce a stop order issued pursuant to subsection (5)(a) of this
Page 7, Line 22section or an embargo order issued pursuant to subsection (5)(b) of this section.
Page 7, Line 23(6) The department may adopt rules as necessary to
Page 7, Line 24implement this section.
Page 8, Line 1SECTION 4. Act subject to petition - effective date -
Page 8, Line 2applicability. (1) This act takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following
Page 8, Line 3the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the
Page 8, Line 4general assembly; except that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant
Page 8, Line 5to section 1 (3) of article V of the state constitution against this act or an
Page 8, Line 6item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item,
Page 8, Line 7section, or part will not take effect unless approved by the people at the
Page 8, Line 8general election to be held in November 2026 and, in such case, will take
Page 8, Line 9effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.
Page 8, Line 10(2) This act applies to food labeled or packaged on or after the applicable effective date of this act.