On Food Innovation and "What is a Burger?"
This week, the European Parliament will vote to ban the use of words such as “burger”, “sausage”, “yoghurt style” and “cheese alternative” in the description of plant-based products.
Jasmijn de Boo, Vice President of ProVeg International, said: “There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that consumers are confused or misled by the current labelling of vegetarian and vegan products. On the contrary, there is strong evidence to suggest that renaming them would create confusion. Over 100,000 people already agree with us.
“The use of the terms ‘burger’, ‘sausage’ and ‘cheese alternative’ on meat-free and dairy-free products serves an important function in communicating characteristics that consumers are looking for at point of purchase, especially in terms of taste and texture.
"Just as we all know full well that there is no butter in peanut butter, no cream in coconut cream, and no meat in mincemeat, consumers know exactly what they’re getting when they purchase veggie burgers or veggie sausages.”
Separately, a recent Louisiana law restricts using words such as "burger" and "sausage" to describe non-meat products, cell-based meats, etc. As a result, Tofurky, the Good Food Institute, Animal Legal Defense Fund, American Civil Liberties Union and Plant Based Foods Association have filed a lawsuit.
Jessica Almy, Good Food Institute director of policy, said: “It’s absurd that Louisiana’s elected officials are spending their time on the imaginary crisis of people confusing veggie burgers for beef burgers.
“Consumers deserve better than lawmakers passing condescending laws that try to dictate what Louisianans buy.
"Consumers are no more likely to believe that ‘veggie burgers’ contain cow meat than Girl Scout cookies contain Girl Scouts.”
OUR TAKE
The plant-based food sector will continue to grow, driven by the efforts of innovators and traditional providers (Smithfield Foods, Tyson Foods, Perdue Farms, Coca-Cola, Nestle, etc.)
It is unfortunate that legal efforts by the EU, Louisiana, as well as several other countries and states seek to establish odd legal barriers.
Demand drivers for plant-based alternatives include environmental, health and animal welfare concerns, but 1) the ultra-processed nature of some products may mitigate their potential benefits and 2) the use of regenerative farming techniques may address issues within the meat production industry.
Cell-based meats/poultry/fish, plant genome adaption and new farming techniques (indoor, vertical, sea-based, etc.) will also reshape the nature of food.