MEPs back ban on use of 'burger' and 'steak' for plant-based foods

Veggie burgers, tofu steak and cauliflower schnitzel will be off the menu if the European parliament gets its way after a vote on food names.

- Jennifer Rankin

MEPs voted yesterday by 355 in favour and 247 against to reserve names such as “steak”, “burger” and “sausage” exclusively for products derived from meat, a longstanding demand of farm unions.

In order to come into effect, the idea would also have to be approved by a majority of the EU’s 27 member states, which is far from certain.

The vote is a victory for French centre-right MEP Céline Imart, who drafted the amendment to legislation intended to strengthen the position of farmers in the food supply chain.

“A steak, an escalope or a sausage are products from our livestock: not laboratory art, nor plant products,” said Imart, who is also a cereals farmer in north western France. “There is a need for transparency and clarity for the consumer and recognition for the work of our farmers.”

She argues the proposal is in line with EU rules, which already ban the use of terms such as “milk” and “yogurt” for nondairy products.