South Dakota’s Five-Year Moratorium on Cell-Cultured Protein Takes Effect July 1

Packaged cultured meat displayed with a label highlighting its production through in vitro cell culture of animal cells.

Northeast Radio SD News – South Dakota - A temporary, five-year moratorium on cell-cultured protein products in South Dakota will officially go into effect on July 1.

The pause, enacted under Senate Bill 124, was signed by Governor Larry Rhoden as part of a legislative compromise designed to give regulators and health experts more time to study the emerging food technology.

“Until we know more about the safety of cell-cultured protein, a 5-year moratorium will allow for more adequate studies and for lawsuits to resolve,” Governor Rhoden said in a statement. “You won’t catch me eating these products, but it’s against our values to ban products just because we don’t like them. This moratorium received overwhelming support from our state legislature, and I was proud to sign it.”

The legislation emerged as a compromise charted by Rhoden, bringing together agricultural groups, state legislators, and industry stakeholders on both sides of the issue. According to the Governor’s office, the five-year pause is intended to achieve three primary goals:

·         Permit Further Study: Provide time to evaluate the products within existing regulatory frameworks while pending litigation in other states unfolds.

·         Reduce Legal Risk: Respect constitutional limits regarding commerce to avoid unnecessary and costly state litigation.

·         Preserve State Values: Maintain South Dakota’s long-standing commitment to fair market principles.

The measure has garnered strong support from the state’s traditional agriculture sector. Craig Bieber, President of the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association (SDCA), praised the state’s approach to balancing research with an open market.

“SDCA appreciated Governor Rhoden charting the path forward with a compromise that balanced further research with South Dakota’s open market mindset,” Bieber stated. “Cell-cultured products will never be a competition to real meat, and thanks to the compromise, South Dakota maintains a fair marketplace and avoids retaliatory actions from outside the state, ensuring consumers continue to have access to the highest-quality beef produced here in South Dakota.”

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The moratorium builds upon previous protective measures for the state’s agricultural industry. In 2025, Governor Rhoden signed HB 1022 into law, making it strictly illegal to falsely label cell-cultured protein products as “meat.”

The impending July 1 effective date coincides with the 2026 South Dakota Governor’s Ag Summit taking place this week. The summit serves as a gathering point for policymakers, industry leaders, producers, and prospective farmers to discuss the future of the state’s leading industry.