đź”— Share this article European Parliament Vote to Ban Meat-Based Terms for Plant-Based Products In a major vote on Wednesday, European Parliament members decided 355 to 247 to reserve food names such as "steak" and "sausage" solely for animal-derived foods. The Decision Signifies Should this proposal is implemented, common plant-based items such as veggie burgers, soy steak, and vegetable schnitzel could need to change their names throughout EU countries. However, for the ban to be enforced, it needs to receive approval from most of the 27 EU countries, something that is uncertain. The Debate Surrounding the Proposal Proponents contend that customers need transparent labeling and that meat terms must exclusively refer to products derived from livestock. "An escalope and sausages are goods from our livestock: not from synthetic production or plant products," said French MEP CĂ©line Imart. Critics, including Green MEPs, called the move pointless regulation. "Plant-based burgers, seitan schnitzel and tofu sausage do not confuse shoppers, just certain lawmakers," declared Austrian lawmaker Thomas Waitz. Previous Efforts and Judicial Background This isn't the first effort to regulate such names. EU lawmakers voted down a similar ban in 2020. France previously enacted a national ban on traditional names for plant-based foods in 2020, but EU courts determined it invalid under EU law in this year. Industry and Consumer Response Leading German supermarkets such as Aldi and Lidl object to the measure, cautioning that changing familiar names would mislead consumers. Consumer groups cite research showing that the majority of shoppers understand product labels when products are properly marked as vegan. "Nearly 70% of consumers recognize the terminology as long as products are clearly labelled vegan or vegetarian," noted Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC. What Following the Vote The legislative measure now faces consideration by EU member states, where it needs to secure majority support to be enacted. Considering the divided views within both politicians and the public, the future of this initiative is still unclear.