EU parliament approves ban on ‘veggie burger’ and other meaty labels

MEPs approved the measure on Wednesday with 355 votes in favour, 247 against, and 30 abstentions.

The vote so far targets seven labels, down from the original 29 first proposed. They are: “burger,” “steak,” “sausage,” “escalope,” “hamburger,” “egg yolk,” and “egg white,” according to the proposal documents.

The ban, first put forward by French conservative MEP Céline Imart in July, argues that consumers might be misled or confused by names that evoke meat when the product contains no animal components.

But many in the alt-protein sector, and wider food industry, have questioned those claims, as Impact Loop reported earlier today.

'Crazy'

Måns Ullerstam, CEO at foodtech investor Kale United, calls the decision “crazy.”

“What about words like ‘coconut milk’? Those should also be banned? They also imply that it contain milk,” he wrote in a text message to Impact Loop.

“Banning words like burger or sausage for plant-based products is unnecessary and counterproductive,” said Rafael Pinto, senior policy manager at the European Vegetarian Union, in a press statement today.

Alex Holst, deputy head of policy at nonprofit think tank the Good Food Institute Europe, said: "Familiar terms such as ‘sausage’ and ‘burger’ help people know what to expect from plant-based meat products, and survey after survey shows the vast majority of Europeans are not confused by them."

Kristoffer Sunér of Greenfood Group suggested the measure could create unnecessary hurdles for companies developing new ingredients, textures, and flavours.

Environmental NGO WePlanet has also raised concerns, with representative Rob De Schutter describing the proposed ban as “a clear case of regulatory overreach driven by meat lobby pressure."

WePlanet is one of the organisers behind the No Confusion campaign, which has gathered over 400 food organisations and over 25,000 signatures to pressure Brussels to scrap the proposal.

What now?

The Parliament’s vote now opens the way for negotiations with the European Commission and the Council, which must also approve the ban before it becomes law.