A federal judge has denied Texas’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit challenging its cultivated meat ban. Companies say the ban unconstitutionally protects ranches.
TEMPLE, Texas — A federal judge in McLennan County delivered a setback to the State of Texas on Jan. 20, denying its motion to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the state’s ban on lab-grown meat sales.
U.S. District Judge Alan Albright ruled from the bench that the lawsuit’s constitutional claims can move forward, marking an early win for two California-based cultivated meat companies. However, Judge Albright also denied the companies’ request for a preliminary injunction, meaning the ban remains in effect while the case proceeds through discovery and further litigation.
What is Cultivated Meat?
Wildtype and UPSIDE Foods produce what they call cultivated meat — real chicken and salmon grown from animal cells without raising or slaughtering animals. Both companies have passed federal FDA and USDA safety reviews and received approval to distribute their products across the United States.
Before Texas banned sales in September 2025, Wildtype was selling cultivated salmon at OTOKO, a sushi restaurant in Austin.
The Constitutional Challenge
The lawsuit argues that Texas’s ban, Senate Bill 261, violates the Constitution’s Commerce Clause by discriminating against out-of-state businesses to protect local agriculture.
“Texas is trying to use government power to pick winners and losers in the marketplace, favoring in-state agriculture to the detriment of innovative, out-of-state competitors,” said Paul Sherman, senior attorney at the Institute for Justice, which is representing the companies. “The Constitution doesn’t allow states to wall off their markets just to protect politically powerful industries from out-of-state competition. Texans—not politicians—should decide what’s for dinner.”
According to court documents, all cultivated meat companies currently authorized to sell their products are based outside of Texas, primarily in California.
Texas’s Defense: Protecting Agriculture
Texas lawmakers and agricultural officials maintain the ban is necessary to protect the state’s robust farming and ranching industry.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller dismissed cultivated meat as “a flash in the pan” that consumers have rejected.
“The cultured meat phenomenon, it was a phase it went through,” Miller said. “There were some companies really geared up and sucked a lot of money into producing lab-raised meat and basically the public just rejected it. It’s not a thing anymore.”
Miller argued that cultivated meat would create direct competition for Texas farmers and ranchers.
“We don’t need any competition. We’ve got plenty of that from foreign countries and other protein sources,” Miller said. “People flat out love their real beef. They don’t want artificial beef.”
A Two-Year Moratorium
Gary Joiner, spokesperson for Texas Farm Bureau, explained that SB 261 creates a two-year moratorium on the production, processing and sale of cultivated meat in Texas.
“The authors of the bill and supporters felt like two years was appropriate to allow some additional research, to allow any questions about some of the safety of the product to be examined and clarified, and it’s a chance for more transparency,” Joyner said.
Joyner emphasized that Texas Farm Bureau’s primary concern is proper labeling to ensure consumers know exactly what they’re buying.
“Farmers and ranchers in Texas aren’t afraid of competition, they realize there’s a lot of consumer choice and they support consumer choice,” Joiner said. “The great concern about lab grown meat in particular is that there would be appropriate labeling, that the product would be labeled as such that it is not livestock produced meat.”
What’s in the Ban?
SB 261, signed by Governor Greg Abbott in June 2025 and effective Sept. 1, makes selling cultivated meat in Texas illegal. Violations carry steep penalties:
- Administrative and civil penalties up to $25,000 per day
- Class A misdemeanor for first offense (up to one year in jail or fine up to $4,000)
- State jail penalty for repeat offenses (180 days to two years, fine up to $10,000)
Legislative Intent Clear in Court Documents
According to the lawsuit, Texas legislators were explicit about the ban’s purpose to protect agriculture, not address safety concerns.
Court documents cite statements from bill author Senator Charles Perry saying the bill would “support traditional agriculture,” and lead House sponsor Representative Stan Gerdes stating the goal was “to protect our agriculture industry.”
The Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association was the only group to testify in favor of the ban during committee hearings.
Notably, the ban allows Texans to consume cultivated meat—just not purchase it within the state. The companies argue this proves the ban isn’t about safety.
Texas Agriculture by the Numbers
Texas has more cattle than any other state and produces approximately 15% of the beef consumed in the United States. The state also leads the nation in the total number of farmers and ranchers.
Commissioner Miller encouraged Texans to continue supporting local agriculture.
“Eat real meat, eat real beef, eat real chicken and pork,” Miller said. “Go to the meat counter, get the real deal. It’s better for you nutritionally, it tastes better and it’s more attractive on your plate than some lab-grown Frankenstein meat.”
Companies Eager to Return to Texas
Justin Kolbeck, co-founder and CEO of Wildtype, said the company is grateful the case is moving forward.
“Texans should be free to choose what they eat—and to decide for themselves whether they want cultivated meat on the menu,” Kolbeck said.
Dr. Uma Valeti, CEO and founder of UPSIDE, emphasized that cultivated meat is “a safe, new way to produce real meat.”
“The government shouldn’t ban it just to shield entrenched interests from competition. We’re eager to bring our product to Texas and let people judge it with their own taste buds,” Valeti said.
What Happens Next?
The case now moves into the discovery phase, where both sides will gather evidence to support their arguments. Legal experts say the case could take months or even years to fully resolve.
Texas is the seventh state to ban cultivated meat sales. The Institute for Justice is also challenging a similar ban in Florida on behalf of UPSIDE Foods.
For now, the ban remains in effect, meaning cultivated meat products cannot be legally sold in Texas.
