VeggieVision TV supports the position of The Vegan Society following the recent EU decision on food labelling, which will continue to allow terms such as “burger”, “sausage” and “nugget” for plant based products, and restrict the use of 31 other commonly understood descriptors including “steak”, “bacon” and “ribs”.
While clarity for consumers is important, there is no evidence to suggest widespread confusion about plant based alternatives. In fact, a 2025 Radar survey found that 96 percent of respondents could clearly distinguish between vegan and meat sausages, and 75 percent reported no confusion around labelling.
Critics argue that restricting familiar terminology risks creating unnecessary barriers for consumers, increasing costs for businesses required to rebrand, and potentially slowing innovation within the rapidly growing plant based sector. At a time when major global reports, including the 2025 EAT Lancet Commission, continue to highlight the environmental and public health benefits of shifting towards more plant based diets, many believe that clear and consistent naming conventions help, rather than hinder, informed consumer choice.
The Vegan Society’s Public Affairs and Policy Manager, Alistair Currie, commented that the society was “disappointed but not surprised” by the recent EU decision on food labelling that saw the EU parliament and council of ministers’ proposal to permit plant-based products to continue to use “burger”, “sausage” and “nugget” but to ban 31 other terms associated with meat such as bacon, beef, chicken, drumstick, loin, ribs, steak, T-bone and wing.
“Whilst we welcome that staple terms used for vegan products, such as ‘burger’, ‘sausage’ and ‘nugget’ will still be allowed, there is no convincing reason why other staple terms, such as ‘steak’, are restricted. This inconsistency mirrors similar anomalies in the restriction of language around dairy alternatives, where coconut milk and peanut butter are permitted but not soya ,oat or almond milk.
“This is yet another sign of a protectionist meat lobby running scared from the increasing popularity of the ethical, environmental and health benefits of veganism. This decision will remove consumer choice, stifle innovation in the vegan food sector, increasing costs to businesses that will need to re-label and re-market products with new names and descriptions. None of these benefits the consumer.
“We should be encouraging more people to try plant-based alternatives, as the recent EAT-Lancet report1 recommended, not discouraging them by making a fuss about a problem that doesn’t exist.”
There is no evidence to suggest there is any consumer confusion over the labelling of vegan alternative-meat products. A 2025 survey by Radar2 showed the opposite: 96% of panel members were able to differentiate between vegan and meat sausages, and 75% of those surveyed were not confused over labelling.
1https://eatforum.org/update/the-2025-eat-lancet-commission-report-launches/
2 https://radar.avrotros.nl/artikel/vegaworst-en-veganburger-geven-consument-juist-duidelijkheid-62116
Thanks to Glyn Ridgers Photography and VBites for a stunning vegan burger image!
