EU Parliament Vote to Prohibit Meat-Based Terms for Vegetarian Products
In a significant vote this week, MEPs decided by a margin of 355-247 to restrict food names such as "steak" and "schnitzel" solely for meat products.
What the Vote Signifies
Should the measure becomes law, popular vegetarian items such as veggie burgers, soy steak, and vegetable schnitzel could have to change their names across EU markets.
Nevertheless, before the restriction to take effect, it needs to gain approval from most of the 27 EU countries, something that is uncertain.
The Debate Behind the Measure
Proponents contend that customers need transparent labeling and while traditional names should exclusively refer to items derived from livestock.
"An escalope and sausages represent products from animal farming: not from synthetic production nor vegetable sources," stated French lawmaker the proposal's author.
Opponents, led by Green MEPs, described the move political maneuvering.
"Veggie burgers, wheat schnitzel and soy sausage don't mislead shoppers, just certain lawmakers," said Austrian lawmaker Thomas Waitz.
Past Attempts and Judicial Context
The isn't the first attempt to control such names. The European parliament voted down a similar ban in 2020.
The French government previously enacted a domestic ban on traditional names for plant-based foods in 2020, but the European court of justice ruled it invalid under EU law in this year.
Industry and Consumer Response
Leading German retailers including Aldi and Lidl oppose the proposal, warning that changing familiar names would confuse consumers.
Consumer groups point to surveys indicating that the majority of shoppers understand product labels as long as products are properly marked as vegetarian.
"Nearly seventy percent of shoppers recognize the terminology as long as products are clearly labelled vegan or vegetarian," said Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC.
What Comes Next
This legislative measure next faces consideration by European governments, and it needs to secure majority support to become law.
Considering the divided opinions among both politicians and the public, the outcome of the proposal is still unclear.
