International

California lab-grown meat start-up gets first green light

Illustrative image

| By AFP |

A California-based lab-grown meat start-up received the first green light for such products from the US food safety agency on Wednesday, although the product still has more hurdles to clear before being sold to consumers.

The US Food and Drug Administration said it carried out a “careful evaluation” of Upside Foods’ cultivated chicken, including data and information provided by the company, and had “no further questions at this time,” signaling a go-ahead for the firm.

“We started UPSIDE amid a world full of skeptics, and today, we’ve made history again as the first company to receive a ‘No Questions’ letter from the FDA for cultivated meat,” founder and CEO Uma Valeti said in a press release.

The FDA specified that the evaluation did not constitute “an approval process.”

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Upside Foods will still have to undergo inspection by the US Department of Agriculture, for example, before it can sell its products.

That said, this “is a watershed moment in the history of food,” Valeti said.

Several start-ups are aiming to produce so-called lab-grown meat, which would allow humans to consume animal protein without harming the environment through farming and without any animal suffering.

These products differ from plant-based substitutes such as soy burgers that mimic the texture and flavor of meat but do not contain any animal protein.

The start-up Eat Just, a competitor of Upside Foods, was the first to receive authorization to make artificial meat, in Singapore in 2020.

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While succeeding in the general lab-meat market has proven complicated and expensive, some companies have set their sights on petfood, whose consumers are much less picky.

Bond Pet Foods, a Colorado start-up, is creating animal protein from a microbial fermentation process to feed dogs.

Related Topics:California Environment food us

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International

France debates ban on social media for children under 15

French lawmakers are set to decide this Monday whether to ban social media access for children under the age of 15, a measure aimed at protecting adolescents’ mental health and combating cyberbullying.

The proposed legislation also includes a ban on mobile phone use in high schools, and comes shortly after Australia introduced a similar restriction in December, becoming the first country in the world to prohibit social media for minors under 16.

“The emotions of our children and teenagers are not for sale, nor should they be manipulated by American platforms or Chinese algorithms,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in a video published on Saturday.

The centrist president has made the protection of minors from the harmful effects of social media and the regulation of screen time a key priority of his second term, which ends in 2027.

At 4:00 p.m. local time (15:00 GMT), members of the National Assembly are scheduled to debate the bill introduced by Macron’s ruling party, Renaissance. If approved, the proposal will move to the Senate for consideration in mid-February.

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The leader of the ruling party’s lawmakers and former prime minister, Gabriel Attal, expressed confidence that senators would also back the measure, which would take effect on September 1, following the summer holidays.

“France could become a pioneer in Europe within a month. We can change the lives of our young people and their families,” Attal said, adding that the country would gain greater independence from “certain powers” that seek to “colonize minds.”

France’s public health agency Anses has warned that social media platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram, which are deeply embedded in teenagers’ daily lives, can have a detrimental impact on mental health.

The agency highlighted multiple risks, including cyberbullying, constant social comparison, exposure to violent content, and attention-capture mechanisms that negatively affect sleep patterns.

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International

Federal immigration agents kill man in Minneapolis, sparking protests and outrage

Federal immigration agents shot and killed a 37-year-old Minneapolis man during an operation on Saturday, authorities confirmed, sparking new protests and deepening outrage over federal immigration enforcement in the city.

The victim, identified as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, was a U.S. citizen and intensive care nurse who worked at a Veterans Affairs hospital and was widely respected in his community, according to colleagues and news reports.

Officials said the shooting occurred during a targeted immigration raid in south Minneapolis. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) described the incident as an act of self-defense by agents who believed the man posed a threat.

However, videos reviewed by multiple outlets and eyewitnesses show Pretti holding a phone and not displaying a weapon before being pepper-sprayed, tackled by agents and then shot multiple times, raising serious questions about the official account.

The killing comes amid a broader federal immigration enforcement operation in the city and follows another controversial shooting in early January in which Renée Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, was fatally shot by an ICE agent, leading to widespread protests and criticism of federal tactics.

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International

Delcy Rodríguez seeks political agreements after Maduro’s ouster

Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, on Saturday called for “reaching agreements” with the opposition to achieve “peace” in the country, which the United States says it now controls following the military operation that removed President Nicolás Maduro from power.

Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president, assumed interim leadership after the leftist leader was captured on January 3 during a military incursion that left nearly 100 people dead.

In her first public statements since taking office, Rodríguez signaled a shift in the strained relationship between Caracas and Washington, while also committing to the release of a “significant number” of political prisoners.

“There can be no political or partisan differences when it comes to the peace of Venezuela,” Rodríguez said during an address in the coastal state of La Guaira, broadcast on state television VTV.

“From our differences, we must speak to one another with respect. From our differences, we must meet and reach agreements,” she added.

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The day before, Rodríguez instructed the head of Parliament — her brother Jorge Rodríguez — to convene talks with various political sectors in the country aimed at achieving “concrete and immediate results.”