A new decree published on Tuesday by the French government clarifies the list of names that are reserved for products of animal origin, such as “steak”, “escalope”, “ham”, “fillet” and “entricot”, and which thus become prohibited for products plant proteins of animal origin, AFP and Agerpres report.

The text of the law is one of the oldest statements by companies in the livestock sector, which believe that terms such as “vegetable ham”, “vegan sausages” and “vegetarian bacon” could cause confusion among consumers.

The French government published the first decree in June 2022, but it was suspended as an emergency by the Council of State. The new text details, first of all, in two lists terms reserved for products of animal origin or containing very little vegetable protein.

Among the “terms prohibited from being used to refer to foods containing vegetable proteins” are: “fillet”, “tenderloin”, “thigh”, “escalope”, “steak”, “ham”, “tenderloin” and “steak”. .

Terms “referring to the names of species and groups of animal species, to the morphology or anatomy of animals” are also prohibited for the marketing or advertising of a product containing vegetable proteins.

Some terms will be able to be used for foods of “animal origin that may contain vegetable proteins” in small amounts, provided they do not exceed a certain maximum percentage of vegetable content. These are products in which plant ingredients “do not replace products of animal origin, but are added as a supplement.”

These include names such as “sausage”, “bacon”, “chorizo”, “cordon bleu”, “jambono”, “bacon”, “pastrami”, “pate”, “terrine”, “rosette” and “sausage » (boiled, fried, grilled, from Lorraine, from Toulouse, from Alsace, from Lyon, etc.).

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The maximum vegetable protein content for the latter ranges from 0.1% for a liquid whole egg to 6% for a meat roll and 5% for sausage. “Mergez” sausage can contain up to 2% vegetable proteins. At the same time, the use of terms from the animal world for flavors remains permitted.

“Products that are legally produced or sold in another European Union member state or in a third country” will remain allowed, the French government said in the same text, which will take effect three months after its publication in the French Official Gazette.

The decree provides for maximum fines of 1,500 euros for individuals and 7,500 euros for companies that do not comply with the new provisions, as well as a transition period of one year to liquidate existing stocks.

Within the European Union, it is allowed to call plant products by the terms traditionally used for animal meat, with the exception of products based on animal milk. For example, the word “yogurt” or “cheese” cannot be used for vegetable substitutes.