The analysis confirms that although it may seem trivial, it is of great importance to food producers, especially when it comes to marketing issues.
“Although food products containing plant proteins are gaining popularity across the European Union, there remains legal uncertainty about how to market them on the single market,” said EuActive.
It is expected that the current lack of clarity will finally be resolved as the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union has become embroiled in the ‘vegetarian burger’ dispute.
As mentioned by the portal, the crux of the matter is the terminology used in relation to “alternative plant products”, in particular the labeling of these products with terms related to meat, such as “steak”, “sausage”, “scallop” or “hamburger”. At the moment, this issue is not regulated at the level of the European Union.
The regulation has been challenged by vegan activists
The issue was raised during the negotiations of the recent reform of the Common Agricultural Policy, but an attempt to ban “veggie burgers” was thwarted by the European Parliament in 2020, Euractive said.
Therefore, in 2021, France, wishing to provide consumers with greater clarity when choosing products, banned the use of names commonly associated with products of animal origin for plant foods.
The regulation has been challenged by vegan activists, such as the European Vegetarian Union (EVU), and the case has gone to the Council of State – the body that gives opinions on all government bills and decrees. This one is in August. It decided to refer the case to the European Court of Justice, according to Euractive.
The portal expects that “once the court clarifies whether member states can submit their own rules on this issue, the State Council will resume the hearing.”
“This case (before the European Court of Justice) will determine once and for all whether the EU adopts a coordinated approach to plant-based food labeling or forces companies and consumers to contend with up to 27 different rules,” the study concluded.
The date of the trial and the verdict before the court in Luxembourg has not yet been announced.
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