April 22, 2021

Companies protest new EU rule banning comparisons between plant-based products to dairy

Companies such as Danone, Nestle, and Unilever are protesting a new rule banning them from comparing plant-based products to dairy in their marketing, which could be agreed by European Union negotiators this week, Reuters reported.

Lawyers said the new rule will ban marketing slogans like Nestle's Nescafe Almond Latte's "delicious alternative to dairy" or Danone's Alpro's "plant-based alternative to Greek-style yogurt".

Lawyers also said even packaging design akin to a milk carton can be interpreted as an evocation to milk products and subsequently banned.

Siska Pottie, head of the European Alliance for Plant-Based Foods, said it would be close to impossible to talk about plant-based products. Pottie cited more possible banned examples such as "lactose-free" or "half the carbon emission compared to butter" for plant-based product marketing.

The Amendment 171 legislation was supported by European parliament with 54% of MEPS in favour in October last year, even though the same voting round reversed a proposed ban for the term "veggie burger".

The new legislation will require the approval of EU member states and parliament. If signed off, the new EU law will be implemented in all 27 member states.

Current EU regulations do not allow plant-based products from being named "vegan yoghurt" or "almond milk".

According to ING Research, plant-based product sales in Europe have hit EUR 3 billion (~US$3.62 billion; EUR 1 = US$1.20) and estimated to reach EUR 5 billion (~US$6.01 billion) by 2025. This however, is only 4.1% of dairy sales. Plant-based drinks hold 10% of the market for milk.