French Court shuts down “Veggie Burger Ban” and orders Government to pay
Brussels – 29/01/2025 The French Court released this Wednesday its final ruling on the decrees attempting to ban the use of traditional denominations for plant-based alternatives. The decision follows the previous reasoning of the European Court of Justice, stating that such a ban would be contrary to EU law. The judge argues that Member-States do […]
Everybody is calling for it: The EU Action Plan on Plant-Based Foods
More than 130 organisations call for EU Action Plan for Plant-based Foods More than 130 groups representing farmers, health professionals, consumers, animal welfare and environmental interests have written to European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, Christophe Hansen, urging him to develop an EU Action Plan for Plant-Based Foods by 2026. The groups, including 30 national […]
Advocate-General recommends French Court to drop “Veggie Burger Ban”
Brussels – 17/01/2025 The “veggie burger ban” saga continues in France with another devastating blow dealt to the government proposing the restrictions. In October the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that the French government’s attempt to ban meaty names for plant-based foods is not allowed under EU law, unless very specific conditions are met. […]
Solving a problem that didn’t exist: how plant-based label bans confuse consumers
When the French government introduced in 2021 a decree that prohibited the use of “meaty” denominations for plant-based foods, the rationale it presented to justify the new law largely rested on the notion of consumer confusion. Calling plant-based products by familiar names like “burger,” “steak,” or “sausage” misleads shoppers into thinking they’re buying animal-based products […]
Victory for consumer choice and transparency: ECJ rules Member State “veggie burger bans” not allowed
Brussels – 04/11/2024 In a decision to have profound repercussions on the crucial issue of food labelling for plant-based products across Europe, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) today stated that the French government’s attempt to ban meaty names for plant-based foods is not allowed unless very specific conditions are met. The case, first brought […]
Draghi report overlooks potential of Europe’s agri-food sector
The much-anticipated report by Mario Draghi – former European Central Bank President – titled ‘’The future of European competitiveness’’ was published on 9 September. Presented to the European Commission, it looks at the difficulties Europe’s competitive industry is facing while calling for an unprecedented boost to private and public investment across the bloc. The findings […]
EVU’s Annual General Meeting takes place in Berlin
On 2 September 2024, the European Vegetarian Union held its Annual General Meeting in Berlin. The meeting, attended by the EVU’s members, looked at the activities report over the last year, the EVU vision for the next year, and included an interactive policy-focused workshop. The General Meeting also saw important elections for a 2-year mandate, […]
EVU welcomes proposal for an EU Action Plan for Plant-based Foods by 2026
PRESS RELEASE EVU welcomes proposal for an EU Action Plan for Plant-based Foods by 2026 Brussels, 4 September 2024 European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen today presented the conclusions from the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture. The report includes a series of joint recommendations, agreed unanimously by some 29 organisations, including farming […]
Why sustainability should be in every dietary guideline
Recent updates to national dietary guidelines across Europe reveal a growing shift in how governments approach food consumption. Countries like Germany, The Netherlands, Denmark, Austria, and Norway have started recommending reduced meat consumption and increased intake of plant-based foods. Importantly, a number of these countries – although not all – are also integrating sustainability and […]
How the debate on food security and tradition is distorted to promote meat production
On 15 July 2024, and at Budapest’s initiative, EU agriculture ministers were invited to discuss the need to protect Europe’s culinary traditions from novel and innovative foods – that is, plant-based foods and cultivated meat. In light of the pressing issues facing our food systems, the importance and topic of this meeting were both deeply […]
