This Friday, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a ruling allowing manufacturers of plant-based protein foods to use terms traditionally associated with meat, such as “sausage”, “steak” or “burger”. According to the ruling, EU member countries cannot ban these names to describe products such as soy sausages, seitan fillets or quinoa balls, because labeling regulations in force in the Union offer sufficient protection to the consumer against possible confusion.
“Even in the event of total replacement of a single component or ingredient that differentiates a plant product from a meat productthe information offered on the labeling ensures that there is no confusion,” the court noted in its statement. Furthermore, the court said that member states cannot impose general and abstract bans on the use of terms associated with meat, unless a specific legal name is adopted for these products.
However, the judgment also specifies that if national authorities consider that a particular product misleads consumers, can take action against responsible manufacturers and they must demonstrate that this confusion took place.
The origin of the debate and the legal battle in France
The debate around the naming of plant products appeared in 2018when a group of French lawmakers presented a proposal to restrict the use of meat-related terms on vegetarian and vegan products. Supporters of the measure say using words like “steak” or “sausage” on plant-based protein products could confuse consumers and constitute false advertising.
The law It was finally adopted in 2022, but was quickly challenged by three associations and a company which promote the consumption of vegetarian products. These groups argued that the ban was against European Union rules and that sufficient monitoring and labeling mechanisms were already in place to avoid confusion among consumers. The French Council of State, recognizing the complexity of the case, asked the CJEU to rule on the compatibility of French legislation with Community law.
Impact of the decision in Spain and other EU countries
The CJEU ruling also has direct implications for other European countries, such as Spain, where a similar proposal was recently presented. Barely two weeks ago, the Spanish Socialist Party presented an illegal proposal with the aim of fighting against this described as “false advertising” in vegan products that use terms traditionally associated with meat. According to this proposal, plant products would have very different nutritional characteristics from those of animal origin, which could mislead about the true nature of the food. However, the CJEU ruling nullifies any attempt to impose these restrictions.
This decision sets a precedent in the growing debate over how food products based on plant proteins should be labeled in Europe, where the rise of vegetarian and vegan products has generated tensions with the meat industry. Even if the CJEU had already established in 2017 that terms like “milk”, “cream” or “cheese” were to be reserved exclusively for dairy products, this new resolution allows greater flexibility in the use of terms related to meat.
