EU Lawmakers Decide to Ban Meat-Based Terms for Vegetarian Products
During a significant vote on Wednesday, MEPs voted 355 to 247 to reserve product terms such as "burger" and "sausage" exclusively for meat products.
The Vote Signifies
Should this proposal is implemented, popular vegetarian products such as veggie burgers, tofu steak, and cauliflower schnitzel could need to be renamed across EU countries.
However, before the ban to be enforced, it must gain support from most of the EU's 27 member states, which is far from certain.
The Arguments Behind the Measure
Supporters argue that customers require clear information and that meat terms should exclusively describe items derived from livestock.
"A steak and sausages represent products from animal farming: not laboratory art or vegetable sources," said France's MEP Céline Imart.
Critics, led by environmental lawmakers, described the move unnecessary regulation.
"Veggie burgers, seitan schnitzel and tofu sausage do not confuse shoppers, just certain lawmakers," said Austria's lawmaker Thomas Waitz.
Previous Attempts and Judicial Background
This isn't the first effort to regulate these names. EU lawmakers rejected a comparable ban in four years ago.
The French government previously enacted a national ban on traditional names for vegetarian products in 2020, but the European court of justice determined it illegal under European legislation in 2024.
Industry and Consumer Response
Leading Germany's supermarkets such as Aldi and Lidl object to the measure, warning that altering familiar names would mislead shoppers.
Consumer groups cite surveys indicating that the majority of consumers comprehend product labels as long as items are clearly marked as vegetarian.
"Almost seventy percent of consumers recognize these names provided products are explicitly marked vegan or vegetarian," said Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC.
What Following the Vote
This proposal now faces review by EU member states, and it must secure majority support to become law.
Considering the divided opinions among various politicians and the public, the future of the proposal is still uncertain.
