Campbell’s denies meat in its soups is 3D printed
Campbell's has put its IT vice president on leave after a post in which he allegedly said their meat was "made on a 3D printer."
Campbell’s says its soups are not made with 3D-printed chicken, lab-grown chicken or bioengineered meat. The food giant posted the clarification on its website after a leaked audio recording purportedly captured Campbell’s vice president of information technology saying the company’s meat was “3D-printed.”
The “Campbell Soup Company” has been embroiled in an internal scandal that has spilled over to the outside world. The allegations center around the company’s vice president and chief information security officer, Martin Bally, who is accused in the lawsuit of disparaging Campbell’s products and making derogatory comments about colleagues.
Former Campbell’s employee Robert Garza recently released an alleged audio recording of himself speaking with Campbell’s Vice President of Information Technology Martin Bally. The recording is part of a lawsuit Mr. Garza has filed against the company. If the comments heard in the recording were actually made by Mr. Bally, they are unacceptable.
“A recent video contained false comments about our ingredients,” – Campbell’s writes. “The comments heard on the recording about our food are not only inaccurate, they are absurd. We do not use lab-grown chicken or any form of artificial or bioengineered meat in our soups.” It adds that the company only uses chicken from “reputable” suppliers in the US that meet USDA standards.
The post’s references to “bioengineered meat” prompted further investigation outside Campbell’s headquarters. The Florida attorney general confirmed that the state’s consumer protection division is reviewing the claims for potential misleading or confusing consumers.
3D-printed chicken isn’t entirely something out of a sci-fi movie. KFC, which has had to deal with its own chicken-related conspiracies, said it was working with a Russian firm in 2020 to develop a way to “print” lab-grown chicken nuggets using chicken cells and plant material.
Campbell’s has put Bally on leave while it investigates the alleged comments. “Keep in mind, the alleged comments heard on the audio were made by a person in IT, who has nothing to do with how we make our food,” – Campbell’s says.
The timing of the dispute further complicates the situation at Campbell’s, whose soups typically see a sharp increase in demand as families stock up on stews, shared meals for Thanksgiving day.
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