Prima l’Italia

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Italian lawmakers are creating a bill that would ban the sale of lab-grown meat and other synthetic foods in the country, a proposal that supporters say aims to protect Italy’s culinary heritage, Forbes reported.

The proposed legislation came after farming lobby groups collected half a million signatures calling for the protection of “natural food vs. synthetic food.” Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – who also signed the petition – voiced support for the ban.

Minister of Agriculture Francesco Lollobrigida noted that products made in laboratories “do not guarantee quality, well-being and the protection of the Italian food and wine culture and tradition, to which part of our tradition is linked.”

If the bill is passed, violators could face fines topping $65,000.

While the farming lobby welcomed the move, animal welfare groups countered that lab-grown meat is a viable solution to issues such as carbon emissions and food safety. Others criticized the proposal as “reckless,” saying that such a law could hinder scientific development and climate-change mitigation efforts around meat alternatives.

The proposal is one of the latest efforts by Meloni’s right-wing coalition to preserve Italian culture and tradition.

Earlier this week, Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party pushed for legislation that would penalize the use of English and other foreign words in official communications, according to Euronews.

The ban would apply to government entities, schools and universities, with fines of up to $110,000.

Officials said the goal of the planned law is “to defend and promote the Italian language” and protect the national identity. But language scholars at Italy’s prestigious Accademia della Crusca fiercely condemned it.