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Why the EU’s ‘Veggie Burger Ban’ Vote Should Alarm Everyone, Not Just Vegans
(veganhorizon.substack.com)
this post was submitted on 14 Oct 2025
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Europe
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The bottom line is that labels should not be misleading. I purchased shitty vegan sausages once myself - as it didn't say anything obvious about them not being made of meat.
I honestly don't see why vegans are frothing from their mouths about this one. At the end of the day they claim plant based food is better so I don't understand why they would want it to mimic meat products.
Are you saying that you accidentally bought vegan sausage, thinking you were buying regular sausage?
Yes. It wasn't clearly labelled. It didn't say vegan or anything like that.
Edit: you have an example of misleading label here. Not the same I had displeasure to buy but also not saying anything about being vegan. Quorn is the brand name, consumer does not have to know they don't do meat sausages - and shouldn't have to know, products should be clearly labelled.
I do agree with you that that packaging is misleading. But I do think the issue is the lack of the word "vegan" on the front, not the usage of the word "sausage".
Because this vote basically would require it to change into "cocktail cilinders" or something equally stupid, rather than "vegan cocktail sausages" which imo is much clearer.
Well, possibly, but since the industry is unable to self regulate it must be regulated this way or another.
Sure, but this is part of the industry weaponizing legislation to protect itself, not regulate and benefit consumers.
Motivation makes no difference if the end result is the customers benefit.
To me, the current proposal arguably makes things more confusing.
I understand what a veggie burger is. A veggie disc however? Vegan sausage, perfectly clear. Vegan cilinder? Not so much. So I don't think consumers will benefit much if at all here.
If these are sold as Quorn cilinders, they will not be confused with real sausages, that's the point.
No at that point people will just be confused and not understand what the product is supposed to be, a replacement for meat sausages. So that's even less clear imo.
But that's the issue - processed plant pulp is not a replacement for sausages and shouldn't pretend to be. It is like a fake caviar for example - it should not be sold as caviar.
There is nothing wrong with plant based products, there are many great ones - but they shouldn't pretend to be something they are not.
That's very much your personal opinion. I find the alternatives suggested far more confusing (and I don't even buy the vegan versions). And these products are absolutely designed and developed as replacements for meat-based sausages, so that's a poor argument.
Product labelling should remove confusion from consumers, not protect personal opinions on what exactly constitutes a sausage. The majority seems happy to refer to things like "veggie sausage" and isn't confused by that terminology, so if that's the clearest option then we should go for that.
Yes, which is what the EU parliament is doing. Plant pulp manufacturers are free to call their products whatever they want as long as these are not names commonly associated with existing meat products.
It shouldn't say vegan on the front, vegan isn't a diet, it's an ethical viewpoint.
It should say plant based or veggie.
Any of those is fine by me, these terms are clear enough. Though I'm pretty sure there is both a vegan diet and a vegan lifestyle.