EU Parliament Vote to Prohibit Meat-Related Terms for Vegetarian Products
During a significant vote on Wednesday, MEPs decided 355 to 247 to restrict product terms such as "burger" and "sausage" solely for animal-derived foods.
What the Decision Means
Should this proposal is implemented, popular plant-based items such as veggie burgers, tofu steak, and vegetable schnitzel may have to be renamed throughout EU countries.
Nevertheless, for the restriction to take effect, it needs to gain support from most of the 27 EU countries, which remains far from certain.
Key Debate Behind the Measure
Proponents contend that customers need transparent information and while traditional names should only refer to products derived from livestock.
"An escalope and sausages represent products from our livestock: not synthetic production nor plant products," stated France's lawmaker Céline Imart.
Opponents, including environmental lawmakers, called the move political tactics.
"Veggie burgers, wheat schnitzel and tofu sausage don't mislead consumers, just certain lawmakers," said Austria's Green MEP Thomas Waitz.
Past Attempts and Legal Context
This marks another attempt to regulate these names. The European parliament rejected a similar ban in four years ago.
The French government previously introduced a domestic restriction on traditional names for vegetarian products in recent years, but the European court of justice determined it invalid under EU law in 2024.
Industry and Public Reaction
Leading Germany's retailers such as Aldi and Lidl object to the proposal, warning that altering established terms would mislead consumers.
Advocacy organizations point to research showing that the majority of shoppers understand product labels as long as items are clearly identified as vegetarian.
"Almost seventy percent of consumers understand these names provided items are clearly labelled plant-based," said Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC.
What Following the Vote
This legislative measure now faces review by EU member states, where it needs to obtain majority support to become law.
Considering the divided views among both politicians and the public, the outcome of the proposal is still unclear.
