EU Commission Proposes Ban Of 29 'Meaty' Words For Plant-Based Foods

The European Commission recently proposed a ban on 29 “meaty” terms in marketing for plant-based products, arguing that meat exclusively means “the edible parts of an animal.”

It specifically references words like beef, pork, chicken, and bacon, as well as drumstick and ribs. However, common terms like steak, sausage, and burger, all of which are widely used by plant-based brands to describe meat-free alternatives, are notably absent from the proposal.

The Commission said that introducing “specific legal provisions” to “protect” meaty terms would “enhance transparency” and “ensure that customers can make well-informed choices. While consumer confusion has often been cited as a reason to legislate labeling, research generally indicates that people are neither confused nor concerned by meaty labels on plant foods.

The Commission also specifically highlighted the potential for nutritional miscommunication, despite growing evidence that alternative proteins are healthier and better for the planet.

As noted by ProVeg International, using traditionally meaty words like nugget on plant-based alternatives represents a useful way of ensuring customers can find plant-based options with “comparable taste experiences and functions” to meat, including nutrient density.

Lobbyists for the meat and dairy industries have long advocated for tighter restrictions on the marketing and labeling of alternative proteins. Europe is currently the largest market in the world for plant-based meat products, particularly in Germany, France, and Italy.

Meaty word bans and plant-based foods

Photo shows a selection of vegetarian sausages and other packaged plant-based meat products on supermarket shelves — Adobe Stock Using so-called “meaty” words for plant foods can help customers find suitable alternatives

A previous attempt to ban the use of meat-related words for plant-based foods was defeated in the European Parliament in 2020. In 2023, a Swiss court ruled that vegan meat labels are not deceptive to consumers, while Italy’s crackdown is not backed by the majority of consumers. Earlier this year, the Czech government dropped its own bid to ban meat-related terms, a decision welcomed as “common sense” by ProVeg Czechia’s Martin Ranninger.

Despite attempts to ban meaty language on plant-based foods in France, the decree was suspended by the Conseil d’Etat in 2024. In October, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) struck down the French bid, effectively forbidding all EU member states from enacting bans.