SB415: SB415 Advertising and Sale of Meat; prohibit any person from producing, selling, trading, distributing for human consumption any lab-grown meat

Georgia law currently regulates how meat is advertised and sold, but it does not address lab-grown meat, which is food made by artificially growing cell cultures from animal muscle or organ tissue rather than raising and slaughtering livestock. This bill adds a new section to that part of Georgia's code (O.C.G.A. Title 26, Chapter 2, Article 4) that would make it illegal for any person to produce, sell, trade, distribute, or even offer to do any of those things with lab-grown meat intended for people to eat. The bill defines 'animal' broadly to include cattle, swine, sheep, goats, fish, poultry (including eggs), and game animals as already defined under Georgia's game and fish laws. It defines 'lab-grown meat' as any food product made wholly or partly by artificially growing animal muscle or organ cell cultures. The bill repeals any conflicting laws but does not include a stated effective date beyond the standard process for new Georgia legislation.

• Adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 26-2-162) making it illegal to produce, sell, trade, or distribute lab-grown meat for human consumption in Georgia.
• Also bans merely offering to produce, sell, trade, or distribute lab-grown meat for human consumption, not just completing the transaction.
• Defines 'lab-grown meat' as any food product made wholly or partly by artificially growing animal muscle or organ cell cultures.
• Defines 'animal' broadly to include cattle, swine, sheep, goats, fish, poultry, eggs, and game animals as defined elsewhere in Georgia law.
• Repeals any existing Georgia laws that conflict with this new prohibition.

Any company or researcher developing or selling lab-grown or cultivated meat products in Georgia, grocery stores and restaurants that might otherwise carry such products, and Georgia consumers who would no longer be able to legally buy lab-grown meat in the state.

If enacted, lab-grown meat products, an emerging food technology grown from animal cells rather than raised livestock, would be completely barred from Georgia's market. Businesses could not manufacture, sell, or distribute these products in the state, and consumers would not have legal access to them through in-state channels.

• Section 1 adds new Code Section 26-2-162 to Title 26, Chapter 2, Article 4 of Georgia law, which governs advertising and sale of meat.
• Subsection (a) defines 'animal' to include cattle, swine, sheep, goats, fish, poultry, eggs, and game animals as defined in O.C.G.A. § 27-1-2.
• Subsection (a) also defines 'lab-grown meat' as any food product produced wholly or in part by artificially growing animal muscle or organ tissue cell cultures.
• Subsection (b) prohibits any person from producing, selling, trading, distributing, or offering to do so with lab-grown meat for human consumption.
• Section 2 repeals all laws and parts of laws that conflict with the new prohibition.

1. 2026-01-27Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2026-01-16Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Jason T. Dickerson (R, SD-021)Primary sponsor
• Russ Goodman (R, SD-008)
• Drew Echols (R, SD-049)
• Sam Watson (R, SD-011)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)
• Max Burns (R, SD-023)
• Larry Walker (R, SD-020)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)

• lab-grown meat
• food regulation
• agriculture law
• meat sales
• cultivated meat ban