EU Parliament Decide to Prohibit Meat-Based Names for Plant-Based Foods
During a significant vote on Wednesday, European Parliament members decided 355 to 247 to reserve product terms such as "burger" and "schnitzel" exclusively for meat products.
The Decision Means
Should this proposal is implemented, popular vegetarian products like veggie burgers, tofu steak, and cauliflower schnitzel could need to be renamed throughout EU countries.
However, before the restriction to be enforced, it must gain support from a majority of the 27 EU countries, something that is far from certain.
The Debate Surrounding the Measure
Proponents argue that customers need clear information and that meat terms should exclusively describe products from livestock.
"An escalope and sausages represent products from our livestock: not synthetic production nor plant products," stated France's lawmaker CĂ©line Imart.
Critics, led by Green MEPs, described the move populist maneuvering.
"Veggie burgers, seitan schnitzel and soy sausage do not confuse shoppers, just certain lawmakers," said Austria's lawmaker Thomas Waitz.
Past Efforts and Legal Context
The marks another effort to regulate such terminology. EU lawmakers rejected a comparable prohibition in four years ago.
France earlier enacted a domestic restriction on meat terms for plant-based foods in 2020, but EU courts determined it illegal under EU law in this year.
Industry and Consumer Reaction
Leading Germany's supermarkets including Aldi and Lidl object to the proposal, cautioning that altering established names would mislead consumers.
Consumer groups cite surveys indicating that the majority of shoppers understand product labels when items are clearly marked as vegetarian.
"Nearly seventy percent of shoppers recognize these names as long as items are clearly marked vegan or vegetarian," noted Irina Popescu, a food policy expert at BEUC.
What Next
The legislative measure next faces review by European governments, where it needs to secure broad support to become law.
Considering the mixed views within both lawmakers and the public, the future of this initiative remains uncertain.
