đź”— Share this article EU Parliament Vote to Ban Meat-Based Names for Vegetarian Products During a major decision this week, MEPs voted 355 to 247 to reserve food names including "burger" and "sausage" exclusively for meat products. What the Decision Signifies If the measure becomes law, popular plant-based items like plant-based burgers, soy steak, and vegetable schnitzel may need to be renamed throughout EU markets. Nevertheless, before the restriction to take effect, it needs to gain support from most of the 27 EU member states, something that remains uncertain. The Debate Behind the Proposal Supporters argue that customers require transparent labeling and that traditional names must only describe products from animals. "An escalope or a sausage represent products from animal farming: not from laboratory art or vegetable sources," said French lawmaker CĂ©line Imart. Opponents, including Green MEPs, described the decision unnecessary restriction. "Veggie burgers, seitan schnitzel and tofu sausage don't mislead consumers, only rightwing politicians," said Austria's Green MEP Thomas Waitz. Previous Efforts and Legal Context This marks another attempt to regulate these names. EU lawmakers rejected a comparable ban in 2020. The French government previously introduced a national ban on traditional names for vegetarian products in recent years, but the European court of justice ruled it illegal under EU law in 2024. Business and Public Response Leading German retailers including Aldi and Lidl object to the measure, cautioning that changing established names would mislead consumers. Consumer groups point to surveys showing that the majority of consumers understand these names as long as items are properly marked as vegan. "Almost 70% of consumers understand the terminology as long as items are explicitly marked vegan or vegetarian," noted Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC. What Comes Following the Vote This proposal now faces consideration by European governments, and it needs to obtain broad support to become law. Considering the divided views within both lawmakers and the general population, the future of this initiative is still unclear.