## [U.S. Introduces "REAL Butter Act" to Regulate Synthetic and Lab-Created Fats](/consumer-industry-news/us-introduces-real-butter-act-to-regulate-synthetic-and-lab-created-fats) July 10, 2026 A new legislative project has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives aiming to protect traditional dairy standards and strictly regulate how molecularly synthesized fats are labelled. The bill, designated as H.R. 9387 and officially known as the REAL Butter Act, seeks to amend Section 403 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Under this proposed regulation, any product marketed as "butter" that uses fat sourced from non-agricultural, thermochemical synthesis processes must clearly and explicitly declare itself as "laboratory-created butter" directly before its main product name on the packaging. The bill is designed to safeguard the historic federal definition of butter established in 1923. That standard legally mandates that authentic butter must consist of at least 80% dairy fat derived exclusively from cow's milk or cream. Proponents of the REAL Butter Act argue that as synthetic biology and molecular food innovations advance, consumers deserve clear, unambiguous labelling to distinguish traditional agricultural dairy from lab-synthesized alternatives. If passed, the legislation will have immediate, far-reaching operational impacts on food manufacturers, particularly in the baking, pastry, and frozen dough sectors: Recipe & Formulation Audits: Transnational operators and manufacturers who swap out traditional dairy fat for lab-made molecular alternatives in products like croissants, pastries, or chocolate truffles will face a heavy compliance burden. Packaging Redesigns: Companies using these synthetic fats as functional ingredients will be legally required to update their packaging architecture to display the mandatory warning statement. Source Consumer News Tags USA, Laboratory-created butter, REAL Butter Act.