The end of veggie sausages? EP in favor of a ban. “We need to protect the meat industry”

The European Parliament voted in Strasbourg on Wednesday to ban the use of names such as “steak”, “sausage” and “hamburger” for vegetarian and vegan products.

355 MEPs voted for the proposal, 247 were against. However, this does not mean that such regulations will come into force. The adopted report is only a mandate for negotiations with the Member States within the EU Council on the final shape of the regulations.

However, if the regulations come into force in their current form, terms such as “plant-based steak” or “vegetarian burger” will not be able to be used for products that do not contain meat.

In July, the European Commission presented a legislative proposal banning the use of the terms “beef”, “pork” or “chicken” for plant products, but did not include, among others, “burger” and “sausage”. During the work in the EP, new terms were included in the negotiation proposal.

Proponents of the ban argue that these terms may mislead consumers and emphasize the need to protect the meat industry. Among those speaking against the project are: representatives of the sector of plant alternatives to meat products and organizations promoting vegetarianism; they claim that products clearly labeled as vegan or vegetarian do not mislead consumers.

In 2024, the Court of Justice of the EU ruled that existing EU law was sufficient and that member states could not independently ban the use of terms such as “vegan burger”.

From Brussels Łukasz Osiński (PAP)

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