Plant-based products can still be sold as burgers and sausages

Meatless and plant-based products can still be called sausages and burgers, the European Parliament has voted.

The ruling means veggie burgers, soy steaks and vegan sausages can be sold as such in restaurants and takeaways across the UK.

The ruling follows a campaign by Copa Cogeca, Europe’s largest farming association, which argued that labelling vegetarian food with terms associated with meat would confuse and mislead consumers.

However, a group of 13 organisations, including Greenpeace and WWF, argued that a ban on the words "steak" or "sausage" could make the products more obscure for consumers and expose the EU to ridicule. They also believed it could discourage consumers from shifting to plants-based diets and undermine the EU’s environmental and health targets.

The EU supported these arguments, stating that there should be no confusion so long as the products were clearly labelled as vegetarian or vegan.