---
title: HB 201. Food; selling, offering for sale, trading, or distributing lab-grown meat; prohibit
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb201
cite_as: HB 201, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb201
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb201.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb201/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69717
date: 2025-02-04
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb200.md
next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb202.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb201.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 201
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-01-30
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
  - Eric Bell
  - Leesa Hagan
  - David Huddleston
  - Patty Stinson
  - Brent Cox
  - Doreen Carter
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB201/2025
upstream_id: 1949637
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - lab-grown meat
  - food regulation
  - agriculture
  - cell-cultured meat
  - food sales
---

# HB 201. Food; selling, offering for sale, trading, or distributing lab-grown meat; prohibit

## Text

House Bill 201
By: Representatives Bell of the 75th, Hagan of the 156th, Huddleston of the 72nd, Stinson of
the 150th, and Cox of the 28th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 4 of Chapter 2 of Title 26 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to advertising and sale of meat generally, so as to prohibit selling, offering for sale,
trading, or distributing lab-grown meat; to provide for definitions; to provide for related
matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 4 of Chapter 2 of Title 26 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
advertising and sale of meat generally, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as
follows:
<ins>"26-2-162.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Animal' means any animal, including cattle, swine, sheep, goats, fish, and poultry,
including eggs, raised for the production of an edible product or products intended for
human consumption. Such term also includes game animals, as defined in Code Section
27-1-2.
(2) 'Lab-grown meat' means cell cultured meat.
</ins>
<ins>(3) 'Meat' means the flesh, offal, or other by-product of any part of the carcass of an
animal that has been slaughtered.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute lab-grown
meat."
</ins> SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

A Georgia House bill would make it illegal to sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute lab-grown meat, defined as cell-cultured meat, anywhere in the state.

### Plain-language summary

Georgia law currently has no specific ban on lab-grown meat, meat grown from animal cells in a lab rather than from a slaughtered animal. This bill would add a new section to Georgia's meat advertising and sale law (O.C.G.A. § 26-2-162) that makes it a crime to sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute lab-grown meat in the state.
The bill defines 'animal' broadly to include cattle, swine, sheep, goats, fish, poultry (including eggs), and game animals raised for human consumption. It defines 'lab-grown meat' simply as cell-cultured meat, and defines 'meat' as the flesh, offal, or other by-product of a slaughtered animal's carcass. The bill does not spell out a specific penalty for violating the new prohibition or set an effective date beyond the standard process, and it repeals any conflicting Georgia laws.

### What it does

- Adds a new Georgia Code section making it illegal to sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute lab-grown (cell-cultured) meat.
- Defines 'animal' to cover cattle, swine, sheep, goats, fish, poultry, eggs, and game animals raised for human consumption.
- Defines 'lab-grown meat' as cell cultured meat and 'meat' as flesh, offal, or other by-product from a slaughtered animal's carcass.
- Repeals any existing Georgia laws that conflict with the new prohibition.

### Who it affects

Companies or researchers that produce or sell cell-cultured meat, grocery stores and restaurants that might carry such products, and Georgia consumers who would no longer be able to legally buy lab-grown meat in the state.

### Why it matters

If enacted, cell-cultured meat products could not be legally sold, traded, or distributed anywhere in Georgia, effectively blocking this emerging food technology from the state's market regardless of federal approval status for such products.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 adds new Code Section 26-2-162 to Georgia's meat sale and advertising law (Article 4, Chapter 2, Title 26).
- Subsection (a) defines 'animal,' 'lab-grown meat' (cell cultured meat), and 'meat' for purposes of the new section.
- Subsection (b) states it is unlawful for any person to sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute lab-grown meat.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting Georgia laws.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2025-01-30)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-02-04)
- Sponsors: Eric Bell, Leesa Hagan, David Huddleston, Patty Stinson, Brent Cox, Doreen Carter
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69717

> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb201.md?full=1