Francisco Guerreiro rejects boycott of vegan and vegetarian food products

Brussels, 16 October 2020 - With regard to the votes on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) taking place next week, MEP Francisco Guerreiro (Greens/EFA) is preparing to reject two proposed amendments that seek to restrict the names that can be used on the labels of vegetarian or vegan products.  

"These proposals clearly came from the desperation of the meat and dairy sector in the face of the exponential growth of consumer interest in products with a low ecological footprint and that take animal welfare into consideration," said the MEP. 

One of them has to do with the attempt to restrict the use of names such as 'hamburger' and 'sausage' on vegetarian and vegan products, even if accompanied by terms such as '100% vegetable', 'vegetarian', ‘plant-based' (Amendment No. 165). The other, which the MEP will also reject, aims to exclude the possibility of vegetable alternatives to dairy products using this same description: a soy drink cannot state, for example, that it is a 'plant-based alternative' (amendment No. 171). 

The measures were proposed by the European Parliament's political group of the Socialists. “Contrary to what the Socialists seem to believe, the growing preference for plant-based products, to the detriment of those of animal origin, will not be stopped with these restrictions on names,” warns the MEP. 

Supporting Francisco Guerreiro are several national and multinational companies such as Nestlé, Izidoro, Unilever, Becel, Campofrio, Ikea and others that no longer exclusively produce meat, fish and dairy products, since they also make products for vegan consumers.  

“These companies believe that restricting the names of their plant-based products would destabilize their sales, as it creates confusion among consumers. It's bad for consumers, bad for companies and catastrophic for the environment,” declares the MEP. 

On the table, there is the possibility that the names for veggie burgers will become ‘veggie discs’, while sausages become 'tubes' or 'units'.  

The proposed amendments came up with the argument that the names or descriptions currently used - both for vegan food substitutes for meat and fish, and for dairy products - confuse consumers. To this, the MEP responds that "not allowing an almond drink - and I say 'drink' because the law already restricts the use of the term 'milk', 'cheese' or yogurt' - to contain in its description an indication that it can be used as a milk substitute is terrible for consumers. These consumers, especially those who are vegan and those allergic to dairy products, should be able to be informed that certain products can serve as an alternative”. 

Regarding the subject of hamburgers, Francisco Guerreiro adds that “the terms 'hamburger' and 'sausage' refer to the format of the food and give indications about the type of use that can be given to it, not reflecting in any way that they are necessarily of animal origin”.

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