Allow It: The Ex-Beatle Calls On EU to Abandon Prohibition on Plant-Based ‘Steaks’.

Paul McCartney has joined calls for the European Commission to dismiss an initiative to ban the use of terms such as “banger” and “patty” for meat-free alternatives.

A Controversial Vote

The former Beatle has joined forces with eight members of parliament who have petitioned the European Commission, stating that a ban ratified in October by the European parliament would tackle a non-issue while hindering progress on climate goals.

The legislation would signal the termination for the use of labels such as cutlet, patty, banger or fillet when referring to products derived from vegetables or plant-based proteins. Recommended names include the less appealing “rounds” or “tubes”.

“To stipulate that burgers and sausages are ‘vegetarian’ should be sufficient for sensible people to understand what they are eating. This also promotes attitudes which are essential to our health and that of the Earth,” commented the musician.

A Prominent Campaigner

The musician is one of the world’s most prominent proponents of a meat-free lifestyle. Together with his deceased spouse founded the Linda McCartney vegetarian products range in 1991, and he and their daughters Mary and Stella started the global “Monday Without Meat” initiative to persuade people to cut down on animal products.

These meat-free alternatives have been a key component in a global trend of increased interest in products to substitute for meat, despite the fact that financial backing has diminished since a peak during the COVID-19 crisis.

Farming Opposition

However, alongside the rise of plant-based products has come a backlash, notably from the lobbying farming and meat distribution industries, which are anxious about the possible impact of falling sales on employment.

The European parliament ruled 355–247 to forbid “meat-associated” names from being used on vegan foods. As stated by media, Céline Imart, a member of the centre-right European People’s party, told the parliament: “I accept that these traditional terms are products from our livestock farms. Full stop. No lab-grown imitations, no plant-based products.”

Wider Consequences

The correspondence endorsed by the McCartneys and the UK politicians contended that the European regulations could force the UK into alterations as well, because the economic and legal frameworks are still so linked notwithstanding the UK’s exit from the EU.

The EU has a long-established “geographical indication” system for stopping businesses from benefiting from the titles of products associated with particular regions, such as sparkling wine from France, Greek olives or Parma ham. But the effort to restrict the use of everyday language is far more contentious.

Linguistic Challenges

A number of the words that would be forbidden have fluid interpretations. As an illustration, reference books define a sausage firstly in relation to meat but secondly as “an object resembling a sausage”. Even more problematically, the key meaning of “burger” is often given as a “flat round mass of minced meat or vegetables”.

The eight parliamentary supporters comprise ex- Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and former Green party leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay.