☕️ A meaty ban

Lab-grown meat bans are gaining traction... [Advertisement] May 03, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [MassMutual ]( Good morning and Happy Friday. Here’s an interesting stat: A new academic analysis of climate change in cinema found that, of the 250 most popular fictional movies of the past decade, roughly 10% include a scene in which the characters acknowledge global warming. Some of the movies that did: Tenet, Marriage Story, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and that zero-emissions classic, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw. —Matty Merritt, Cassandra Cassidy, Dave Lozo, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 15,840.96 +1.51% S&P 5,064.20 +0.91% Dow 38,225.66 +0.85% 10-Year 4.571% -2.4 bps Bitcoin $59,519.70 +2.15% Carvana $116.50 +33.77% Data is provided by *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 2:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Stocks [rose]( yesterday as investors digested JPow’s recent comments and decided they only had to fear fear itself—and not interest rate hikes. Investors changed into the fast lane to buy Carvana after the used car sales site reported its best earnings ever Wednesday evening.  AGRICULTURE Florida becomes 1st state to ban lab-grown meat Lab grown meet in a petri dish with hand up to stop it.Francis Scialabba There’s finally a culture war that actually warrants the title. Yesterday, Florida became the first state to officially [ban]( lab-grown meat, and more states are floating similar bills. After years of massive fundraising rounds and media attention, the cultivated meat industry is facing pushback from politicians and powerful meat lobbying groups. Referred to as “fake meat” and “slop” by politicians, the protein is made by taking animal cell cultures and growing them in a lab into an edible meat substitute. - About 150 companies have been working to create lab-grown meat as of last year. - Two startups, Upside and Good Meat, [earned]( USDA approval last year for their cultivated chicken. But no lab-grown meat is currently available in the US, and both startups say their products will debut in restaurants before grocery stores. Why are politicians so fired up? Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called lab-grown meat a threat to the state’s agriculture industry, specifically ranching. Beef cattle generate over $900 million a year in the state, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Florida ranks ninth in the US for beef cattle production. Nationally, the meat industry is worth ~$283 billion annually, and some traditional meat producers have spent years supporting hurdles for anyone trying to disrupt it. In 2021, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (it represents cattle ranchers, and you might know its slogan: “Beef. It’s what’s for dinner.”) pushed for a labeling rule preventing lab-grown meat from being called beef. Earlier this year, the same group and other meat lobbyists supported bills banning lab-grown meat from school lunches. Though they have not yet succeeded in getting them enacted. But there’s a growing divide in the legacy meat industry. The North American Meat Institute, which represents larger meat companies and suppliers, opposed Florida’s ban, saying it would “restrict consumer choice and stifle innovation.” That checks out since Tyson, Perdue, Unilever, Nestlé, and Cargill have all either invested in smaller startups or created research departments for the alternative protein.—MM PRESENTED BY MASSMUTUAL [Don’t put it off]( [MassMutual ]( Boomers are expected to transfer a mind-bending $83t* to their adult children in the next 2–3 decades. So, yeah, it’s def time to start having those (potentially awkward) convos about generational wealth. [MassMutual]( can help. They’ll guide you through any and all of life’s, uh, delicate financial moments so you can feel more confident about tomorrow. As an industry leader in financial guidance for over 170 years, [MassMutual financial professionals]( can help you with your planning and protection needs: retirement, investments, wealth transfer, life or disability insurance, you name it. Chatting with the ’rents about wealth transfer is always a tough talk. [Let MassMutual make it easy](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Police dismantling the pro-Palestinian protest encampment at UCLA]Eric Thayer/Getty Images 🪧 College campuses remain protest hubs. As protests against Israel’s actions in the war in Gaza continue on college campuses around the US, police in riot gear [arrested]( about 200 protesters at UCLA and dismantled their camp. Police also cleared protesters who occupied a library at Portland State. And Rutgers postponed final exams and set an afternoon deadline for protesters to leave, which they agreed to do peacefully. The Associated Press estimates that [2,000 people]( have been arrested at campus demonstrations in recent weeks. President Biden even weighed in yesterday, saying that peaceful protests are lawful but that violence and vandalism are not and that the protests have not changed his stance on Israel. iPhone sales are down, Apple share buybacks are up. Apple managed to keep investors happy, sending its stock [shooting up]( after-hours yesterday, despite selling fewer iPhones last quarter. Sales of the signature phone dipped 10% year over year, and revenue fell 4.3% to $90.8 billion. But Apple also announced $110 billion in share buybacks, the largest in the company’s history, per CNBC. And sales in China, which has been a sore spot, came in at $16.4 billion, less than a year earlier but more than analysts had predicted. TikTokers can dance to Billie Eilish and Drake again. Unlike the US government, music industry giant UMG has come to terms with TikTok. After yanking its impressive roster of artists’ music off the platform in February because of a licensing dispute that hinged on royalty payments, protection from AI dupes, and online safety, UMG has [reached]( a new deal with TikTok that will bring the music back. Though terms of the agreement were not disclosed, UMG said it would bring “significant industry-leading benefits” to its musicians. HEALTH Demand for weight loss drugs is fueling competition GIF of Undertaker behind AJ StylesWWE When you’re the most valuable company in Europe, things can get messy—even when you’re absolutely crushing it. That’s the lesson that Ozempic- and Wegovy-maker Novo Nordisk is learning. Business is booming: Yesterday, the Danish drugmaker reported that sales of Wegovy more than doubled last quarter, and at least 25,000 people are starting to take it in the US per week. It also posted a $3.65 billion net profit and increased its sales [outlook]( for 2024. But its stock still dropped yesterday. Why? Eli Lilly, its US rival, also happens to be crushing it. - Novo plans to slash prices, leading to lower-than-expected revenue, because of Lilly’s Wegovy competitor Zepbound. - While Novo currently dominates the global obesity treatment market, some analysts think Lilly’s unrelenting sales growth and investment in manufacturing will ultimately give it an edge. Both companies have faced supply [constraints]( amid soaring demand. The trend may continue…Novo’s CFO said, “Pricing is expected to fall further as volumes and competition increase.” And this week, Novo’s home base, Denmark, cut subsidies for Ozempic as the drug’s rising popularity led to steep costs. Stateside, the Senate has launched a [probe]( into “outrageously high” prices for Ozempic and Wegovy.—CC TOGETHER WITH THE POINTS GUY [The Points Guy]( Heads up, credit card users. Proposed legislation could destroy credit card rewards—and that includes the national treasures that are points, miles, and cash back. If passed, the [Credit Card Competition Act]( could change credit card rewards as we know them and put your personal information at risk. Learn more + [protect your points](. TECH Can burying feces save the species? Underground pipesMediaNews Group, Long Beach Press-Telegram/Getty Images A tech startup recently secured $58 million in funding to reduce carbon emissions by sequestering biomass waste in an impervious subterranean environment. Or: A company wants to store [poop]( underground to save the planet. Vaulted Deep received the financial backing from [Frontier]( a carbon removal fund with members that include Meta and Alphabet, to remove 152,480 metric tons of carbon dioxide between 2024 and 2027. It’s a signal that there’s confidence in the scalability of its technology, which promises to combat the planet’s rising temperatures by taking fecal matters more seriously. How does it work? The company will take carbon-rich wastes—agricultural and food wastes, along with manure—that would otherwise release CO2 into the atmosphere when spread across landfills or incinerated and convert them into a slurry that’s injected into disposal wells for permanent storage. This won’t fix everything: As Canary Media [notes]( if Vaulted Deep achieves its CO2 goal over the next four years, it won’t be enough to reverse the damage of burning fossil fuels. The level of CO2 Vaulted Deep plans to remove is equivalent to 40% of the annual emissions from a single US gas-fired power plant.—DL GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [A Google search bar in a Safari browser suggesting the question "What can I buy for 20 billion dollars"]Francis Scialabba Stat: Relationship advice: Find someone who wants you as much as Google wants to be the default search engine on Safari. Newly released court documents in the government’s antitrust case against Google, which is scheduled to wrap up with closing arguments today, show that Google parent Alphabet [paid]( Apple $20 billion to remain the default in 2022. Bloomberg reports that during the trial, a witness let slip that Google pays 36% of search ad revenue to Apple, and—though that relationship is at the heart of the government’s monopoly claims against Google—other documents show Microsoft also wanted in, offering Apple 90% of ad revenue to break up with Google and go for Bing. Quote: “I didn’t think I could get through what I needed to get through.” With her memoir coming out next week, WNBA star Brittney Griner is [opening up]( about the painful time she spent detained in Russian prison after two cartridges of cannabis oil were found in her luggage when she arrived in the country. The Olympic gold medalist described the appalling conditions she was kept in to ABC’s Robin Roberts and acknowledged that she experienced thoughts of suicide while wondering whether she would be freed. “I was just so scared because of so much unknown,” Griner, who said she was still coping with the experience, told Roberts. Read: He lost $36 billion in a week. Now, he’s fighting to avoid prison. ([Bloomberg]( QUIZ [Here quizzy quizzy]( [New Friday quiz image]( The feeling of getting a 5/5 on the Brew’s Weekly News Quiz has been compared to gaining a few hours when you switch time zones. It’s that satisfying. [Ace the quiz](. NEWS [What else brewing](#) - [Exxon’s]( $60 billion purchase of Pioneer Natural Resources got the green light from the FTC after the oil giant agreed not to give a seat on its board to Pioneer’s former CEO, whom the agency accused of colluding with OPEC to raise oil prices. - [Sony Pictures and Apollo Global Management]( offered $26 billion in cash for Paramount Global, as the company also mulls an offer from Skydance Media. - [Peloton’s]( CEO is stepping down, and the company plans to lay off 15% of its staff as it continues to grapple with waning popularity in a world in which people aren’t stuck at home anymore. - [Arizona’s governor]( signed a bill repealing the 1864 abortion ban recently revived by the state’s highest court. - [A whistleblower]( at Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems died suddenly this week after contracting a fast-spreading infection. - [Dan Schneider]( the former Nickelodeon producer behind hits like iCarly and The Amanda Show, sued Warner Bros. Discovery and others associated with the documentary series Quiet on Set, claiming they defamed him by implying he was involved in the sexual abuse of child actors. RECS [Friday to-do list] Cheers: Experts picked the [best beers]( in the world. Mapped: It’s time to acknowledge America’s “[hockey belt]( Debate: Do you agree with this writer’s takedown of [restaurant ravioli]( Watch: How to get $500 to cover an [emergency expense](. Learn AI: Our AI Crash Course (May 13–24) is filling up. Don’t miss your chance to get confident on AI. [Use code BREW20 for 20% off while seats are available](. It’s giving…hired: Connect with companies + [explore job openings]( with just one application. Express Employment Professionals can help you find jobs that match your skills—with [no fee]( Swing for excellence: Golf driving ranges and family fun centers are two multibillion-dollar markets—and [GolfSuites]( is building the future of this off-course industry. Even Kevin Harrington (yep, from Shark Tank) is partnering. [Read our article]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Brew Jigsaw: If you’ve never seen the tulips in Amsterdam, [here’s what they look like](. Friday puzzle In today’s puzzle, you’re going to [click on this link]( and you’ll see an illustration. Your job is to find the 54 cliches depicted in the image (or as many as you can). Good luck! SHARE THE BREW [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We’re saying we’ll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others: [morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=4904f90a]( ANSWER Find the list of cliches [here](. Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: subterranean, meaning “being under the surface of the Earth.” Thanks to Jasmine from Whanganui, New Zealand, for the hip underground suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From MassMutual Securities offered through registered representatives of MML Investors Services, LLC, Member SIPC® (www.SIPC.org) and FINRA (www.FINRA.org) and a MassMutual subsidiary, 1295 State Street, Springfield, MA 01111-0001.©2023 Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual®), Springfield, MA 01111-0001. All rights reserved. MM202609-306623. *Source: [ ✤ A Note From GolfSuites This is a paid advertisement for GolfSuites 1, Inc.’s Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at [invest.golfsuites.com](. Written by [Neal Freyman]( [Abigail Rubenstein]( [Matty Merritt]( [Cassandra Cassidy]( and Dave Lozo Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. 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