Brussels, BE/March 5, 2026 – The ongoing institutional fight over denominations for meat-alternative food products continues in Brussels, with the European Parliament considering a broadened inclusion of terms like “sausage”, “burger”, and escalope”. According to CCC Senior Policy Analyst Bill Wirtz, this misses the mark on the real challenges facing European consumers:
“One would think that with European consumers facing a high cost of living, including with their grocery runs, policy-makers would focus on important challenges lying ahead. However, we’re again embroiled in the meat denominations debate for yet another year. The time policy-makers spend on this issue should be used on simplifying our overregulated farming rules and strengthening our supply chains.”
“Consumers know that a “veggie burger” does not actually contain meat. If you don’t want a veggie alternative because you prefer meat, that is your prerogative. But imposing on manufacturers and restaurants what they can call their products clearly goes too far.”
“We all do our part to act more responsibly with the resources we have. Nobody pretends that meat alternatives are a silver bullet, but hampering the development of these products for what appears to be a culture war is silly and unnecessary”, concludes Wirtz.
