Over 200 companies and organisations have kickstarted a campaign calling on MEPs to reject the proposed ban on the use of meat-like terms on vegan product labels.
A week before MEPs gather for a plenary vote to ban the use of terms like ‘burger’ and ‘bacon’ on plant-based meat, more than 200 organisations are urging EU policymakers to throw out the proposal.
Penning an open letter to the EU, the No Confusion campaign is led by animal rights charities, climate organisations, and leading food manufacturers, including Planted, La Vie, and The Vegetarian Butcher (owned by JBS, the world’s largest meat company).
The petition, which has received nearly 6,000 signatures in less than 48 hours, is in response to two EU proposals that seek to overturn a 2020 vote by the European Parliament, which allowed vegan products to use meat-like denominations.
The European Commission is looking to restrict the use of 29 terms, like ‘bacon’, ‘chicken’ and ‘beef’, and an amendment by the Parliament proposes extending the ban to words such as ‘burger’, ‘sausage’ and ‘steak’.
Last month, the EU Parliament’s 49-member agriculture committee voted in favour of a ban, setting the stage for a plenary vote on October 7. If that goes through, it will make it to the trilogue negotiations between the EU Commission, Council and Parliament.
Critics of the move argue that it puts the EU at odds with one of its fastest-growing industries – Europe is the largest market for plant-based meat globally.
‘The current legal framework already provides clarity and transparency for consumers, while additional restrictions would only risk hindering consumers’ trust and stifling food innovation,” said Siska Pottie, secretary-general of the European Alliance for Plant-Based Food, which represents companies like Nestlé, Beyond Meat, and Impossible Foods.
“We urge policymakers to focus on enabling solutions that allow this sector to thrive, rather than introducing unnecessary barriers,” she added.
Meat-like labels on plant-based food don’t confuse consumers
The labelling of plant-based meat has been debated for nearly a decade in the EU, but there were signs that the discourse would come to an end last year, when the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that no member state can prohibit companies from using these terms on vegan product labels.
That decision noted that such bans can be implemented only if a member state legally defines meat products and descriptive terms first (a lengthy and complex process), and even then, such a ban would only apply to products manufactured within that country. The only other option would be an EU-level ban, which is the goal of the new proposals.
One of the main reasons cited by supporters of the ban is that labelling meat-free products the same way as meat would cause confusion for EU citizens. But a host of studies have debunked that idea.
In a large survey by the European Consumer Organisation in 2020, 80% of people said plant-based meat should be allowed to use such terms. And in the 2023 Smart Protein survey, only 9% of citizens from nine member states said they didn’t recognise plant-based meat alternatives.
In fact, in an opinion published last September, the ECJ’s advocate-general stated that the use of several different names resulting from such a ban could be more confusing for consumers.
“So if this ban is not about protecting consumers – who is it protecting? Could it be protecting the interests of the meat lobby? It looks like politicians are trying to use EU law to make life harder for innovators and consumers who support change,” the fittingly named No Confusion campaign’s petition reads.
Remember: the EU has repeatedly delayed green legislation and pandered to the livestock industry, which receives over 80% of the subsidies under the Common Agriculture Policy. In fact, research shows that animal agriculture gets four times as much public funding as the plant-based sector.
The organisations also argue that a ban would add barriers that restrict competition and innovation instead of supporting growth, while taking away opportunities for farmers who produce raw materials. Plus, it would be a blow to the EU’s sustainability goals too.
EU-wide ban would hurt consumer choice, economy, and sustainability plans
The EU’s proposal doesn’t just threaten meat-free products. There are talks of potential constraints on fish alternatives and adding further restrictions to the plant-based dairy sector, which is already forbidden from using ‘milk’, ‘cheese’, ‘yoghurt’ and similar terms.
Plant-Based Foods Europe, a trade association representing companies like Alpro, Oatly and Valsoia, said the ban puts the vegan food industry at a “disproportionate and unjustified disadvantage” and takes away consumers’ freedom of choice.
“Denomination restrictions will only hinder the EU’s ambitions for strategic resilience, innovation, and clash with the growing consumer demand for plant-based options,” it noted. “Rejecting this amendment will safeguard consumer freedom of choice, strengthen farmers’ livelihoods, and protect European innovation.”
The proposals came amid increasing pressure from a dozen member states to prevent such designations on plant-based meat products. Experts fear that with a conservative parliament, there’s a significant chance the EU votes in favour of the ban.
In its open letter, the No Confusion campaign is calling on the EU Commission, Parliament and Council (whose Danish presidency is calling for an EU-wide action plan for plant-based foods) to immediately vote against the proposal on October 7, while immediately and permanently withdrawing the Commission’s version too.
It’s asking policymakers to uphold the legal precedents set by the Parliament and the ECJ that safeguard transparent labelling, and support innovation, sustainability and healthier diets by promoting a level-playing field.
“Courts and parliaments have rejected this nonsense before, because it serves no one. Not consumers, not farmers, not innovators, not the planet,” said Planted co-founder Pascal Bieri. “This is not about protecting anyone from ‘confusion’, nor is this about misleading consumers with […] a celery-schnitzel. It’s about protecting an outdated system from progress. And we cannot let that happen quietly.”
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