When is a sausage a real sausage? Is a burger a real burger if it doesn’t contain meat? Can a schnitzel be called a schnitzel if it is made from plant-based ingredients?

Around these questions, a multi-billion-euro battle has formed and a fierce clash has emerged between two powerful industries in Europe.

In this conflict, the meat industry achieved a significant victory in early October. At the initiative of the European People’s Party, a resolution passed in the European Parliament stipulating that only meat products may carry labels with names such as “sausage,” “burger,” “schnitzel,” etc.

Producers of plant-based products will have to find other ways to describe the items they offer.

The label battle may seem trivial to some—and MEPs from the Green Party described it as such—yet the amounts at stake are enormous. Representatives of the meat industry argue that their very survival is at stake.

The rise of “cultivated meat”

The plant-based meat substitute industry is growing rapidly in Europe. Retail sales in the main categories (plant-based meat, seafood, and dairy alternatives) are estimated at around €8.9 billion in 2024, according to data from the international research firm Euromonitor.

The latest investment data show that European private companies developing plant-based foods, “cultivated meat,” and fermentation-based products (such as seitan) raised nearly €470 million in 2024, an increase of 23% compared to the previous year, according to a related report by the Good Food Institute.

“In Germany, investments in alternative proteins amounted to €134 million last year. This is by far the largest amount ever invested in this sector in Germany in a single year, five times the corresponding amount in 2023, and means that German companies represent 28% of investments in Europe in 2024,” the report states.

“Civil war” in Germany over vegan schnitzels and tofu sausages

Germany is currently the largest European power in alternative proteins. In 2024, approximately 121,600 metric tons of meat substitutes were produced in the country—double the amount in 2019.

For this reason, Germany has also seen the strongest reactions to the European Parliament’s decision to change the labeling of plant-based meat substitutes.

The reactions do not come only from producers but also from retail giants such as Aldi and Lidl and the fast-food chain Burger King.

In total, 21 companies sent a joint letter opposing the resolution, arguing that familiar terms (for example, sausage, burger, schnitzel, etc.) “are practically navigation aids that allow conscious purchasing decisions. They help people assess what they can expect from a food in terms of taste and texture, as well as the way these foods are prepared.”

Supporting them is German Agriculture Minister Alois Reiner. In his statements, he said that a ban on labels like “vegan schnitzel” and “tofu sausages” would cause “incredibly high costs for the economy and would lead to further bureaucracy.”

However, he faces opposition from the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz—whose party is a core member of the EPP. Merz fully supports the ban on these labels. “A sausage is a sausage. A sausage is not vegan,” he recently stated.

Victory for the meat industry

The European Parliament’s decision, which sparked strong reactions from the alternative meat industry and environmental organizations, was welcomed by livestock farmers and meat production and processing companies.

“This is an important step toward strengthening the position of farmers in the food supply chain, for which we thank all the MEPs who supported our proposals along with other agricultural organizations from France, Spain, and Portugal,” emphasized Ettore Prandini, president of Italy’s largest farmers’ association, Coldiretti.

The success reflects a shift in direction within the European Union. A similar proposal had been submitted to the European Parliament in 2020 but was rejected. Now it passed relatively comfortably, with 355 votes in favor and 247 against.

“They are appropriating the names of the very foods they are trying to replace and displace,” said Dennis Drinan, president of the Irish Creamery and Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA), accusing meat substitute companies of cynicism and unfair competition.

In France, meat producers had already won a similar victory, with the government banning the use of terms like “steak” and “bacon” if the products do not contain meat.