Food Labeling Transparency Act.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 3
HOUSE BILL 471
Committee Substitute Favorable 4/1/25
Committee Substitute #2 Favorable 4/8/25

Short Title: Food Labeling Transparency Act. (Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:
March 24, 2025
*H471-v-3*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO PROHIBIT THE MISBRANDING OF CERTAIN FOOD PRODUCTS. 2
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 3
4
REQUIRE LABELING OF MANUFACTURED-PROTEIN MEAT PRODUCTS 5
SECTION 1.(a) G.S. 106-549.15 reads as rewritten: 6
"§ 106-549.15. Definitions. 7
As used in this Article, except as otherwise specified, the following terms shall have the 8
meanings stated below: 9
… 10
(1a) "Agricultural food animal " means a domesticated animal belonging to the 11
bovine, caprine, ovine, or porcine species. 12
… 13
(5a) "Cell-cultured food product" means a food product having one or more 14
sensory attributes that resemble a type of tissue originating from an 15
agricultural food animal but that, in lieu of being derived from meat 16
processing, is derived from manufacturing cell s, in which one or more stem 17
cells are initially isolated from an agricultural food animal, are grown in vitro, 18
and may be manipulated, as part of a manufacturing operation. 19
(5b) "Close proximity" means any of the following: 20
a. Immediately before or after the name of the product. 21
b. In the line of the label immediately before or after the line containing 22
the name of the product. 23
c. Within the same phrase or sentence containing the name of the 24
product. 25
… 26
(9a) "Identifying meat term " means any word or phrase that states, indicates, 27
suggests, or describes a meat product, regardless of whether the word or 28
phrase is used individually, as a portmanteau, or as a compound word. Th is 29
term includes all of the following: 30
a. A common name for the species of the agricultural food animal subject 31
to slaughter and processing, including a calf or cow, goat or kid, hog 32
or pig, lamb, or sheep. 33
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b. A common name for a characteristic of a species of the agricultural 1
food animal subject to slaughter and pr ocessing based on age, breed, 2
or sex. 3
c. Meat; beef or veal; cabrito or chevon; lamb or mutton; or pork. 4
d. A common name used to describe a major cut of a meat of an 5
agricultural food animal slaughtered and processed, including a major 6
meat cut specified in 9 C.F.R. § 317.344, or the common name of an 7
organ or offal, including heart, liver, kidney, or tongue. 8
e. Any other common name that a reasonable purchaser would 9
immediately and exclusively associate with a meat product prepared 10
for sale in normal comm ercial channels such as bacon, baloney, 11
bologna, bone, brat or bratwurst, brisket, burger or hamburger, butt, 12
chop, chuck, cold cut, cutlet, filet, flat iron, frank or frankfurter, ham, 13
hock, hot dog, jerky, liverwurst, loin, London broil, lunch meat, New 14
York strip, pepperoni, porterhouse, ribeye, roast, rib or sparerib, 15
salami, sausage, shank, sirloin, tenderloin, or a comparable word or 16
phrase. 17
(9b) "Insect-protein food product " means a food product having one or more 18
sensory attributes that resemble a t ype of tissue originating from an 19
agricultural food animal but that, in lieu of being derived from meat 20
processing, is manufactured from insect parts. 21
… 22
(12a) "Manufactured-protein food product " means a cell -cultured food product or 23
insect-protein food product. 24
… 25
(14) "Meat food product" means any product capable of use as human food that is 26
made wholly or in part from any meat or other portion of the carcass of any 27
cattle, sheep, swine, goats, bison, fallow deer, or red deer, or any cell-cultured 28
food product made from cells of those animals , excepting products that 29
contain meat or other portions of such carcasses only in a relatively small 30
proportion or historically have not been considered by consumers as products 31
of the meat food industry, and that ar e exempted from definition as a meat 32
food product by the Board under such conditions as it may prescribe to assure 33
that the meat or other portions of such carcasses contained in such product are 34
not adulterated and that such products are not represented as meat food 35
products. This term as applied to food products of equines shall have a 36
meaning comparable to that provided in this subdivision with respect to cattle, 37
sheep, swine, goats, and bison. 38
(15) "Misbranded" shall apply to any carcass, part thereof, m eat or meat food 39
product under one or more of the following circumstances: 40
a. If its labeling is false or misleading in any particular; 41
b. If it is offered for sale under the name of another food; 42
c. If it is imitation of another food, unless its label bea rs, in type of 43
uniform size and prominence, the word "imitation" and immediately 44
thereafter, the name of the food imitated; 45
… 46
m. The product is a manufactured-protein food product and it is not 47
labeled in accordance with G.S. 106-549.28A. 48
… 49
(21a) "Qualifying term " means a word , compound word, or phrase that would 50
clearly disclose to a reasonable purchaser of meat products that a food product 51
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is not a meat product. This includes the following terms: "cell-cultured," 1
"cultivated," "cell-cultivated," "fake," "grown in a lab, " "insect," 2
"insect-based," "insect-protein," "lab-created," or "lab-grown." 3
(21b) "Ratite" means a bird whose breastbone is smooth so that flight muscles 4
cannot attach, such as an ostrich, an emu, and a rhea. These birds are subject 5
to the provisions of this Article and Article 49C to the same extent as any other 6
meat food product. 7
…." 8
SECTION 1.(b) Article 49B of Chapter 106 of the General Statutes is amended by 9
adding a new section to read: 10
"§ 106-549.28A. Labeling of manufactured-protein food products. 11
(a) The label of any manufactured-protein food product that contains an identifying meat 12
term shall also contain an appropriate qualifying term in prominent type and in close proximity 13
to the name of the product. 14
(b) A manufactured-protein food product that does not meet the requirements of this 15
section shall be deemed misbranded for purposes of this Article, provided that the Commissioner 16
shall not enforce the prohibition set forth in G.S. 106-549.23(3) with respect to a product deemed 17
misbranded under this section against any person other than the manufacturer of the 18
manufactured-protein food product." 19
SECTION 1.(c) This section becomes effective October 1, 2025, and applies to 20
products sold or offered for sale on or after that date. 21
22
REQUIRE LABELING OF MANUFACTURED-PROTEIN POULTRY PRODUCTS 23
SECTION 2.(a) G.S. 106-549.51 reads as rewritten: 24
"§ 106-549.51. Definitions. 25
For purposes of this Article, the following terms shall have the meanings stated below: 26
… 27
(4a) "Cell-cultured food product" means a food product having one or more 28
sensory attributes that resemble a type of tissue originating from poultry but 29
that, in lieu of being derived from meat processing, is derived from 30
manufacturing cells, in which one or more stem cells are initially isolated from 31
poultry, are grown in vitro, and may be manipulated, as part of a 32
manufacturing operation. 33
(4b) "Close proximity" means any of the following: 34
a. Immediately before or after the name of the product. 35
b. In the line of the label immediately before or after the line containing 36
the name of the product. 37
c. Within the same phrase or sentence containing the name of the 38
product. 39
… 40
(10a) "Identifying poultry term " means any word or phrase that states, indicates, 41
suggests, or describes a poultry product, regardless of whether the word or 42
phrase is used individually, as a portmanteau, or as a compound word. This 43
term includes all of the following: 44
a. A common name for the species of the poultry subject to slaughter and 45
processing, including chicken, poultry, or turkey. 46
b. A common name for a characteristic of a species of the poultry subject 47
to slaughter and processing based on age, breed, or sex. 48
c. Meat, broiler, fryer, poulet, or yearling. 49
d. A common name used to describe a major cut of poultry slaughtered 50
and processed, including a poultry product such as breast, drumstick, 51
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giblet, thigh, or wing; or the common name of an organ or offal, 1
including gizzard, heart, liver, kidney, or tongue. 2
e. Any other common name that a reasonable purchaser would 3
immediately and exclusively associate with a poultry product prepared 4
for sale in normal commercial channels. 5
… 6
(11a) "Insect-protein food product " means a food product ha ving one or more 7
sensory attributes that resemble a type of tissue originating from poultry but 8
that, in lieu of being derived from meat processing, is manufactured from 9
insect parts. 10
… 11
(16a) "Manufactured-protein food product" means a cell-cultured food product, or 12
insect-protein food product. 13
(17) "Misbranded" shall apply to any poultry product under one or more of the 14
following circumstances: 15
a. If its labeling is false or misleading in any particular; 16
b. If it is offered for sale under the name of another food; 17
c. If it is an imitation of another food, unless its label bears, in type of 18
uniform size and prominence, the word "imitation" and immediately 19
thereafter, the name of the food imitated; 20
… 21
m. If it is a manufactured -protein food product and it is not labeled in 22
accordance with G.S. 106-549.55(e). 23
… 24
(26) "Poultry product" means any poultry carcass, or part thereof; or any product 25
which is made wholly or in part from any poultry carcass or part thereof, or 26
any cell-cultured food product made from cells of poultry, excepting products 27
which contain poultry ingredients only in a relatively small proportion or 28
historically have not been considered by consumers as products of the poultry 29
food industry, and which are exempted by the Board from definitio n as a 30
poultry product under such conditions as the Board may prescribe to assure 31
that the poultry ingredients in such products are not adulterated and that such 32
products are not represented as poultry products. 33
… 34
(28a) "Qualifying term" means a word compound word, or phrase that would clearly 35
disclose to a reasonable purchaser of poultry products that a food product is 36
not a poultry product. This includes the following terms: "cell-cultured," 37
"cultivated," "cell-cultivated," "fake," "grown in a lab, " "insect," 38
"insect-based," "insect-protein," "lab-created," or "lab-grown." 39
…." 40
SECTION 2.(b) G.S. 106-549.55 reads as rewritten: 41
"§ 106 -549.55. Labeling standards; false and misleading labels.labels; labeling of 42
manufactured-protein food products. 43
… 44
(e) The manufacturer of a manufactured-protein food product must ensure that the label 45
of any manufactured -protein food product offered for sale in this State that contains an 46
identifying poultry term shall also contain an appropriate qualifying term in prominent type and 47
in close proximity to the name of the product. Responsibility for compliance with this subsection 48
rests solely with the manufacturer, and not the retailer of the manufactured-protein food product." 49
SECTION 2.(c) This section becomes effective October 1, 2025, and applies to 50
products sold or offered for sale on or after that date. 51
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1
REQUIRE ACCURATE RESTAURANT -MENU LABELING FOR 2
MANUFACTURED-PROTEIN FOOD PRODUCTS 3
SECTION 3.(a) G.S. 130A-248 reads as rewritten: 4
"§ 130A-248. Regulation of food and lodging establishments. 5
(a) For the protection of the public health, the Commission shall adopt rules governing 6
the sanitation of establishments that prepare or serve drink or food for pay and establishments 7
that prepare and sell meat food products or poultry products. However, any establishment that 8
prepares or serves food or drink to the public, regardless of pay, shall be subject to the provisions 9
of this Article if the establishment that prepares or serves food or drink holds an ABC permit, as 10
defined in G.S. 18B-101, meets any of the definitions in G.S. 18B-1000, and does not meet the 11
definition set forth in G.S. 130A-247 for a brewery, distillery, bar, private club, or winery. 12
… 13
(c4) Every establishment that prepares or serves food, as defined in G.S. 130A-247(7), 14
that offers for sale or consumption of a food item containing or consisting of a 15
manufactured-protein food product shall clearly and conspicuously disclose that fact on its menu 16
in accordance with all of the following: 17
(1) For purposes of this subsection, the following definitions apply: 18
a. "Manufactured-protein food product " means a cell -cultured food 19
product, or an insect-protein food product. This term includes: 20
1. A "cell-cultured food product " as defined in 21
G.S. 106-549.15(5a) for products originating from agricultural 22
food animals and in G.S. 106-549.51(4a) for products 23
originating from poultry. 24
2. An "insect-protein food product " as defined in 25
G.S. 106-549.15(9b) for products resembling the meat of an 26
agricultural food animal and in G.S. 106-549.51(11a) for 27
products resembling poultry. 28
b. "Qualifying term" means a term as defined in G.S. 106-549.15(21a) 29
for products marketed as a substitute or imitation of the meat of an 30
agricultural food animal or G.S. 106-549.51(28a) for products 31
marketed as a substitute or imitation of poultry. 32
(2) The menu listing for any item containing or consisting of a 33
manufactured-protein food product shall include a parenthetical or bracketed 34
statement immediately following the item's name. This statement shall: 35
a. Be in a font size no smaller than the menu item name. 36
b. Clearly indicate that the item is derived from artificial, imitation, or 37
cell-cultured components by using language such as "(Contains 38
Artificial/Cell-Cultured Food Product) ," "(Imitation)," or 39
"(Lab-Grown)," or another qualifying term appropriate to the listed 40
menu item that would clearly convey to a reasonable consumer that 41
the product is not derived from traditional meat or poultry. 42
(3) The Department and loca l health departments shall enforce the menu 43
disclosure requirements of this subsection as part of their food establishment 44
inspection and permitting duties under this Article. Compliance with the menu 45
disclosure requirements under this subsection shall be a condition of receiving 46
or renewing a permit pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. 47
(4) The Commission shall adopt rules to implement the menu disclosure 48
requirements provided by this subsection. 49
…." 50
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SECTION 3.(b) This section becomes effective October 1, 2025, and applies to food 1
items sold, offered for sale, or made available for consumption on or after that date. 2
3
SEVERABILITY CLAUSE AND EFFECTIVE DATE 4
SECTION 4.(a) If any section or provision of this act is declared unconstitutional or 5
invalid by the courts, it does not affect the validity of this act as a whole or any part other than 6
the part declared to be unconstitutional or invalid. 7
SECTION 4.(b) Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes 8
law. 9