SOURCE:  POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 10/24/18

It's Day 2 of the joint USDA-FDA public meeting on cell-based meat — or whatever we end up calling it — and today's agenda is all about labeling, a crucial topic as supporters and critics of the burgeoning sector try to shape consumer perception.

The interagency event kicked off Tuesday with seven hours of presentations, public comments and promises of a collaborative approach to setting up a sensible, dual-agency regulatory framework for the industry.

Promising start? Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb vowed to work together, and work fast, to divvy up regulatory responsibility between the two agencies. Perdue said additional interagency meetings were on tap, and he suggested a regulatory framework might come together in relatively short order — as in, next year.

"If we can get this done in 2019, I think that'd be probably pretty fast for federal purposes," he told reporters outside the meeting. 

Jurisdictional TBD: The public display of unity between FDA and USDA is widely viewed as promising, but it remains to be seen where the line will get drawn between the two agencies, even after a handful of tense interagency meetings about the issue.

Where the stakeholders stand: Consumer advocates, food researchers, meat industry groups and the startup companies developing the cell-based meat technology filled the auditorium at USDA headquarters in Southwest Washington. And many of their comments demonstrated the balancing act USDA and FDA officials will have to pull off to ensure the future food products are safe without stifling a fledgling industry.

Here's what some of them had to say ...

Cell-based startups: Memphis Meats, a major player in the cell-based protein space, reiterated its call for a two-pronged approach, with FDA taking the lead on pre-market safety of products and USDA overseeing production and further processing, much like it does for conventional meat products. "We are encouraged by the joint effort between USDA and FDA, in clarifying how both agencies would be involved in regulating cell-based meat," said Eric Schulze, the group's vice president of product and regulation, during the public comment period.

Hop to it: Schulze and other boosters of the technology urged the government to move quickly so other countries don't leave the U.S. behind. "Without a clear, predictable, and timely framework, this industry cannot succeed," he said.

No new rules: Supporters said FDA should oversee the technology under existing regulatory authorities. "No new regulation is needed," said Jessica Almy, policy director at the Good Food Institute. "The presentations [Tuesday] have shown that the FDA has a clear and strong precedent to address safety premarket. The FDA can provide a single point of entry for regulation."

Meat industry sees USDA as lead: Mark Dopp, senior vice president at the North American Meat Institute, argued that while the two agencies should work together, "primary jurisdiction regarding the regulation of cell-based meat products rests with USDA."

Consumer advocates raised all sorts of regulatory and safety concerns to consider — like how to ensure the safety of additives used to grow the products and how to address consumption of uncooked cell-cultured meats. "They're already being touted as clean meat, as being pathogen free. That could mean that they end up being consumed raw more than traditional meat," said Sarah Sorscher, deputy director for regulatory affairs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest.