4th Quarter 2020 Highlights - Issue No. 70

H.R. 8736 proposes to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to allow the sponsor of a drug to use a non-animal test as an alternative to an animal test for the purposes of demonstrating the safety and effectiveness of a drug if such approach satisfies the requirements of the applicable statutes and regulations.

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act, a bill that would ban private ownership of big cats like lions and tigers.

H.R. 8828, the Public Safety and Wildlife Protection Act, proposes a ban on the interstate shipment of steel-jaw leghold and Conibear traps in order to protect wildlife, companion animals, and people.

New York Assembly Bill 11041 would require that eggs sold for human consumption in the state (even if produced out of state) be produced using only cage-free housing systems.

Texas House Bill 316 would ban labeling or advertising any products that are plant-based or produced by cellular agriculture as “meat,” “beef,” “chicken,” “pork,” or other common variations.

Missouri Senate Bill 159 would prohibit any jurisdiction from enacting any law that terminates, bans, or effectively bans by creating undue financial hardship the use of “working animals,” defined to include animals used for entertainment, transportation, or exhibition.

The Good Food Institute and the Animal Legal Defense Fund have filed suit under the First Amendment challenging a Louisiana law that imposes fines for alternative protein products labels with terms usually associated with meat, such as “burger” or “sausage.”

A three judge Ninth Circuit panel has upheld California’s Proposition 12, which requires meat producers who wish to sell their products in California to abide by the state’s standards of production.

Earthjustice, on behalf of Defenders of Wildlife, Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, Oregon Wild, National Parks Conservation Association, and The Humane Society of the United States, has given notice that the groups intend to file suit under the Endangered Species Act, challenging the Fish and Wildlife Service’s removal of the Gray Wolf from the list of species protected under the Act.

A Fourth Circuit panel has affirmed Smithfield’s liability to neighbors of its North Carolina hog farms, leading the company to settle all such nuisance suits. The concurrence has drawn particular attention for its condemnation of factory farming.

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed suit against Jeffrey Lowe, Lauren Lowe, Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park, LLC, and Tiger King, LLC for violating the Endangered Species Act by subjecting animals—including lion and tiger hybrids—to substandard care and treatment. The suit also alleges violations of the Animal Welfare Act.

The United States Justice Department has filed an amicus brief in a case challenging California’s Proposition 12, arguing that the measure regulates extraterritorially, in violation of the Commerce Clause.

The Food and Drug Administration is seeking input on the labeling of food containing cultured seafood cells. The agency is accepting comments until March 8, 2021.

The Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized a rule removing the gray wolf from the species protected by the Endangered Species Act. The rule takes effect January 4, 2020.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved an intentional genomic alteration in domesticated pigs to be used for human consumption.

Singapore has approved for sale a chicken product made from cell cultures, the first such approval in the world.

A new article, “Can Labelling Create Transformative Food System Change for Human and Planetary health? A Case Study of Meat” by Christine Parker, Rachel Carey, Fiona Haines, and Hope Johnson concludes that labeling is a generally ineffective way to transform the food system and that regulatory governance is required.