EU Parliament Vote to Prohibit Meat-Related Terms for Plant-Based Products
In a major vote on Wednesday, MEPs voted 355 to 247 to restrict food names including "burger" and "schnitzel" exclusively for animal-derived foods.
The Decision Means
Should the measure is implemented, popular plant-based products like plant-based burgers, tofu steak, and cauliflower schnitzel could need to change their names across EU countries.
Nevertheless, for the restriction to be enforced, it needs to receive support from a majority of the EU's 27 member states, which is far from certain.
The Debate Surrounding the Measure
Proponents contend that customers require clear information and that meat terms must exclusively describe products derived from animals.
"A steak or a sausage represent products from animal farming: not synthetic production or vegetable sources," said French MEP Céline Imart.
Critics, led by Green MEPs, described the decision pointless regulation.
"Veggie burgers, wheat schnitzel and tofu sausage do not confuse consumers, just rightwing politicians," said Austria's Green MEP Thomas Waitz.
Past Attempts and Legal Background
The isn't the first effort to control these names. EU lawmakers rejected a comparable ban in 2020.
France earlier enacted a national ban on traditional names for vegetarian products in 2020, but the European court of justice determined it invalid under EU law in this year.
Industry and Consumer Response
Leading German retailers including Aldi and Lidl object to the measure, warning that changing familiar names would mislead shoppers.
Consumer groups cite surveys indicating that the majority of consumers understand these names as long as products are properly marked as vegetarian.
"Almost seventy percent of consumers understand these names provided items are explicitly marked plant-based," said Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC.
What Comes Next
The legislative measure next faces review by EU member states, and it needs to obtain majority support to be enacted.
Given the mixed opinions within both lawmakers and the general population, the future of this initiative is still unclear.
