đź”— Share this article European Lawmakers Vote to Ban Meat-Based Terms for Plant-Based Foods In a major decision on Wednesday, MEPs voted by a margin of 355-247 to reserve food names such as "steak" and "sausage" solely for meat products. What the Decision Means Should the measure becomes law, common vegetarian items such as plant-based burgers, soy steak, and cauliflower schnitzel may have to be renamed throughout EU countries. Nevertheless, before the restriction to take effect, it needs to receive support from most of the 27 EU countries, which is far from certain. Key Debate Behind the Measure Supporters argue that consumers need clear information and while traditional names must only describe products from animals. "A steak or a sausage are products from animal farming: not from synthetic production nor vegetable sources," stated French MEP CĂ©line Imart. Critics, led by environmental lawmakers, called the move unnecessary restriction. "Veggie burgers, wheat schnitzel and tofu sausage don't mislead shoppers, only certain lawmakers," declared Austria's lawmaker Thomas Waitz. Past Attempts and Legal Context This marks another effort to control such names. The European parliament rejected a similar prohibition in 2020. The French government earlier enacted a national ban on traditional names for plant-based foods in 2020, but the European court of justice ruled it illegal under European legislation in 2024. Industry and Consumer Reaction Major German retailers such as Aldi and Lidl object to the proposal, warning that changing familiar names would mislead consumers. Advocacy organizations point to surveys indicating that the majority of consumers understand these names when products are clearly identified as vegan. "Nearly seventy percent of consumers recognize these names as long as products are explicitly marked vegan or vegetarian," said Irina Popescu, a consumer officer at BEUC. What Comes Next This legislative measure next faces consideration by European governments, where it must obtain broad support to be enacted. Given the divided views within various politicians and the public, the outcome of this initiative remains unclear.