Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida signed legislation on Wednesday outlawing lab-grown meat in the state, citing the pursuit of "authoritarian goals" as justification.

The technology to produce lab-grown meat is still in development, though two companies recently received approval to sell lab-grown chicken.

In order to generate meat, lab-grown meat typically starts with an animal cell sample that is fed vital nutrients like vitamins and amino acids.

Alabama, Arizona, and Tennessee are pushing to outlaw the production and sale of meat that has been created in a lab, so Florida is not the only state pursuing this goal.

DeSantis claimed that the law was an attempt to "save our beef" and that "global elites" were promoting lab-grown meat.

Supporters of lab-grown meat anticipate improvements in the technique that will make it more environmentally friendly than conventional meat and require less water and land to manufacture. According to Our World in Data, the primary cause of deforestation and a contributing factor to climate change, animal husbandry, accounting for 15% to 19.6% of emissions.

Additionally generated in a controlled environment, lab-grown meat lowers the risk of spreading food-borne illnesses brought on by a variety of diseases and does not contain antibiotic residue, which can lead to the emergence of bacteria resistant to antibiotics.

Opponents of lab-grown beef have raised concerns about the effects on the agriculture sector and questioned the product's safety. The beef sector has actively opposed lab-grown meat.

China and the United States are also at the forefront of exploring methods for growing meat in labs. Opponents of laws prohibiting the production of meat in labs have claimed that such laws might harm American leadership in the global arena and allow China to further its research.

Some within the meat business resisted as well, arguing such prohibitions limit consumer choice and inhibit innovation.

Although it is illegal to grow, sell, or distribute meat that has been raised through cultivation, the law does not forbid technological research. Fears that it would affect research being done on how to raise meat for space flight led to the inclusion of the exception.