EU Parliament Decide to Prohibit Meat-Based Terms for Plant-Based Foods
During a significant vote this week, European Parliament members decided by a margin of 355-247 to reserve product terms including "steak" and "schnitzel" exclusively for animal-derived foods.
What the Vote Signifies
Should the measure becomes law, popular plant-based items such as plant-based burgers, tofu steak, and vegetable schnitzel could have to be renamed across European Union markets.
However, before the restriction to take effect, it must gain support from most of the 27 EU member states, something that remains uncertain.
The Debate Behind the Proposal
Proponents contend that consumers require clear labeling and that meat terms must exclusively describe products derived from livestock.
"An escalope or a sausage represent products from our livestock: not synthetic production nor plant products," said France's lawmaker Céline Imart.
Opponents, including Green MEPs, described the move populist maneuvering.
"Plant-based burgers, wheat schnitzel and tofu sausage do not confuse consumers, just certain lawmakers," declared Austrian Green MEP Thomas Waitz.
Previous Efforts and Legal Background
The marks another attempt to control such names. EU lawmakers voted down a similar ban in four years ago.
France previously introduced a domestic ban on traditional names for plant-based foods in recent years, but the European court of justice determined it invalid under European legislation in this year.
Business and Consumer Response
Major German supermarkets such as Aldi and Lidl object to the proposal, cautioning that changing established terms would confuse consumers.
Advocacy organizations point to surveys indicating that the majority of shoppers understand product labels when items are clearly identified as vegan.
"Nearly seventy percent of shoppers recognize these names as long as items are clearly marked plant-based," said Irina Popescu, a food policy officer at BEUC.
What Next
This legislative measure now faces consideration by EU member states, and it must obtain broad support to be enacted.
Considering the mixed views within various lawmakers and the public, the outcome of this initiative is still uncertain.
