EU Lawmakers Decide to Ban Meat-Based Terms for Plant-Based Foods
During a significant vote on Wednesday, MEPs decided 355 to 247 to reserve food names including "burger" and "schnitzel" solely for meat products.
The Decision Means
Should this proposal becomes law, common plant-based items like veggie burgers, tofu steak, and cauliflower schnitzel could have to be renamed throughout EU countries.
However, for the ban to take effect, it must receive approval from a majority of the EU's 27 member states, which remains far from certain.
The Debate Surrounding the Measure
Supporters contend that consumers need transparent information and that traditional names must exclusively describe products derived from livestock.
"An escalope and sausages represent products from animal farming: not laboratory art nor vegetable sources," said French lawmaker Céline Imart.
Critics, led by Green MEPs, called the decision populist maneuvering.
"Plant-based burgers, seitan schnitzel and soy sausage do not confuse shoppers, just certain lawmakers," declared Austrian lawmaker Thomas Waitz.
Previous Attempts and Judicial Context
The marks another effort to regulate such terminology. The European parliament voted down a comparable prohibition in 2020.
The French government earlier enacted a national restriction on meat terms for plant-based foods in recent years, but the European court of justice determined it invalid under EU law in this year.
Industry and Public Reaction
Leading Germany's retailers including Aldi and Lidl oppose the measure, cautioning that changing established terms would confuse consumers.
Consumer groups point to research showing that most shoppers understand these names as long as items are clearly identified as vegetarian.
"Almost 70% of consumers understand these names provided items are clearly labelled vegan or vegetarian," noted Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC.
What Following the Vote
The legislative measure now faces consideration by European governments, and it needs to secure broad support to be enacted.
Considering the mixed views among various politicians and the general population, the outcome of this initiative remains unclear.