EU agrees to chop meaty names from vegetarian and vegan food products

Original article by Jennifer Rankin in Brussels

EU lawmakers have agreed to ban meaty names such as steak and bacon for vegetarian and vegan foods, but “veggie burgers” and “meat-free sausages” will remain on the table.

Negotiators from the European parliament and EU council of ministers found a recipe for compromise on rules for food names on Thursday, although critics said they were creating needless complexity.

The lawmakers agreed to ban the use of 31 meat-related names to describe vegetarian and vegan products, including bacon, beef, chicken, drumstick, loin, ribs, steak, T-bone and wing, according to a statement published on the EU council website.

But an earlier proposal to prohibit names such as burger and sausage was abandoned.

The naming rules are part of a broader regulation aimed at strengthening the position of farmers in food supply markets. The agreement has to clear further procedural hurdles, which are usually formalities, although leave open the possibility of last-minute haggles.

Céline Imart, a French centre-right MEP, who devised the amendment to ban meaty names, hailed the outcome as “an undeniable success for our livestock farmers”.

Imart, also a cereal farmer, said the agreement reached on Thursday “recognises the value of livestock farmers’ work and protects their products, fruits of unique know-how, against a form of unfair competition”.

Anna Strolenberg, a Dutch Green MEP who negotiated on the issue, said farmers would lose out and said the law should have done more to strengthen their bargaining power.

She also said: “Fortunately, the conservative word police has failed to ban the veggie burger. Unfortunately, a number of other words still end up on the blacklist. That’s a shame; Europe should be backing innovative entrepreneurs, not putting new obstacles in their way.”

The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) described the banning of some names as regrettable.

“Consumers want to eat healthier and need convenient and affordable options,” said Agustín Reyna, the BEUC director general. “These names make it easy for those who want to integrate these options in their diets, and the new rules will increase confusion and are simply not necessary.”

Maria Panayiotou, the minister for agriculture of Cyprus, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, said: “By improving support for farmers and enhancing the role of producer organisations, we are giving farmers additional tools to secure a more predictable and sustainable future.”