PSOE joins France and Italy in vetoing meat names for plant-based alternatives

The PSOE has introduced a proposal in the Spanish Congress to address misleading advertising of vegan or vegetarian products marketed as meat, aiming to prevent consumer confusion. This initiative mirrors actions taken in France, Italy, and Finland. The debate over using meat-related terms for plant-based products has been contentious, with the meat industry advocating for restrictions similar to those on dairy products. Although the European Parliament voted against such restrictions in 2020, the discussion persists as plant-based meat alternatives continue to face market adoption challenges.

Last Saturday we learned that the PSOE has registered an initiative in the Congress of Deputies to "fight against the misleading advertising of certain vegan or vegetarian products that are sold as meat products." Through a non-law proposal for debate in the Agriculture Committee, the socialist group sees it as "necessary and urgent" for Spain to join the trend of European countries consisting of "protecting the consumer against the possible confusion that this type of product may generate and adopting the measures that are necessary for this purpose." According to the PSOE, there would be a supposed increase in the consumption of plant-based alternatives to meat products of 48% in the last two years, which is not true, but which they argue would have "caused a consistent trend in which these maintain a similar appearance to meat products and derivatives, even making use of sales names typical of the meat sector, such as hamburgers or sausages." Finally, the well-known argument of ...