The debate over veggie burger naming has returned, with MEPs tabling amendments to the ongoing full revision of the Common Market Organization (CMO) Regulation during the summer break. ProVeg International, a member of the No Confusion Coalition, is among those calling for these new restrictions to be rejected.
In February this year, the European Parliament agreed to reserve the names of 31 animal species and meat-cut products for products of animal origin, leaving format names such as ‘burger’, ‘sausage’ and ‘nugget’ available for plant-based producers. That compromise, which just entered into force on 19 August, may now be overturned with members of the EPP, Patriots for Europe, and ECR groups signing several proposals to extend the ban.
Among the words to be added to the blacklist are ‘hamburger’, ‘sausage’, ‘nuggets’, but also terms not previously discussed such as ‘meatballs’, ‘rabbit’ or ‘black and white blood sausage’. Products containing a mix of animal and plant-based proteins, also called ‘blended’ proteins, are also now explicitly targeted by the proposals.
“EU consumer law already stops shoppers from being misled about what they buy, so a new blacklist protects no one. It just hands 27 Member States a green light to write 27 different labeling rulebooks for the same product, fragmenting the single market the EU spent decades building’’ states Lucia Hortelano, from ProVeg International.
On the other side, members from the S&D group, Greens/EFA and Left are proposing to either delete the blacklist entirely or ease the implementation on a technical level.
According to the EU Parliament’s calendar, the Agriculture Committee debate on the proposed amendments is set to be held on 2 September, followed by technical meetings, with the vote scheduled for December. The plenary vote will take place next year.
Farmers are dealing with drought, not arguing about labels
As a member of the No Confusion Coalition, ProVeg International is part of a campaign representing over 600 companies, retailers, investors, consumer and environmental organizations across 22 EU countries. The coalition is questioning the timing and priorities of the amendments, which follow a summer of severe drought conditions for farmers.
“Farmers have spent the whole summer combating drought, failing yields, and mounting input costs. What they need from Brussels right now is support to adapt, improved water management, resilient crop varieties, income stability and effective crisis tools. Instead, MEPs are once again expending political resources on re-fighting a settled labeling dispute that does nothing to help farmers through a period of crisis,” says Maria Laura Helguero, EU Policy Lead for WePlanet, who coordinates the No Confusion Coalition.
A single market that speaks 27 different languages
The coalition is particularly concerned by the wording of the new proposals, which states that the list of restricted terms ‘does not affect the ability of Member States to maintain or introduce additional national protective measures for other meat-related designations, in accordance with Union law’. This clause would give each of the 27 Member States the green light to decide for themselves what plant-based products can be called.
This is an open invitation to fragment the single market. A plant-based sausage that can be sold under that name in one Member State could be relabelled, reformulated, or removed from shelves in another. That is having 27 different rulebooks for the same product, and it is exactly the kind of regulatory chaos that the EU claims to be trying to avoid.
The European Court of Justice, in a 2024 ruling, had already warned about the possibility of market fragmentation with such bans.
Red tape at the exact moment the EU says it wants protein diversification
The coalition also warned that reopening the naming debate would directly undermine the European Commission’s stated ambitions for its proposed Protein Plan, which aims to strengthen EU protein production and reduce reliance on imports.
It is claiming to champion protein diversification with one hand while piling fresh rebranding costs, legal uncertainty, and compliance burdens onto the same sector with the other. EU decision-makers should avoid introducing red tape aimed specifically at sustainable protein products, which are intended to support the aims of the Protein Plan.
The coalition argues that the ambitions of the Protein Plan will only be realized if the EU creates the right conditions across the entire value chain, and not just at the level of primary production.
What the coalition is calling for
The No Confusion Coalition is calling on MEPs, the Council, and the Commission to:
- Reject any amendment that restricts the use of terms like ‘burger’, ‘steak’ or ‘sausage’ and others for plant-based foods.
- Do not introduce restrictions to hybrid products, as this would result in them being subject to rules designed for a completely different category of product.
- Restore cultivated meat products’ right to market as meat, in line with biological definitions.
- Reject the Member State opt-out clause, as this would fragment the single market and create legal uncertainty for cross-border trade.
- Redirect legislative attention and resources towards measures that genuinely help farmers cope with drought, climate volatility and market instability.
- Align food labeling policy with the goals of the Protein Plan by creating an environment that enables protein diversification across the entire value chain, rather than introducing new red tape.
ENDS
Contact details for press officers:
Gemma Chapman | International Communications Manager, ProVeg International | [email protected]
Editor’s notes:
- Link for amendment proposals: The proposals can be found at this link. The amendments concerning denominations start at 1577 and end at 1596.
- About ProVeg International: Our vision is a world where the food we eat is good for all people, animals, and our planet. Our mission is to accelerate the transition to a sustainable global food system by making plant-rich foods and alternative proteins more accessible and appealing.
- About the No Confusion campaign: The No Confusion campaign, of which ProVeg is a member, unites more than 600 organizations, from business to civil society, across Europe, opposing unnecessary restrictions on plant-based food labels. Coordinated by WePlanet and the European Vegetarian Union (EVU), the campaign is supported by leading NGOs, food companies, and consumer advocates. www.noconfusion.org
