STRATEGY ▶▶▶


why should this be done at the expense, tradition and work done by other product categories?” Lava agreed, saying that meat denominations are deeply rooted in EU cultural herit- age. Ham, escalope, fillet, sausage, cordon bleu are all tradi- tional names that that have been derived from the hard work of farmers and producers, he said. “Although these products can have different local interpretations depending on the European region, everybody knows what to expect when they buy them,” Lava said. “This is why there has never been a need to protect them”. As the marketing of meat alternative products grows, the meat sector believes its common heritage is at stake. “With- out protection, tomorrow an escalope could easily be made of carrot, soybean or potato starch, while for many years consumers have always known that it was made of poultry meat,” said Lava. “The imitation industry has taken advan- tage of a European loophole to hijack these powerful com- mon names in its favour and make huge profits from that.” Jean-Pierre Fleury, chairman of the Copa-Cogeca working party on beef and veal, agreed. “I am sorry to say that this is an obvious case of cultural appropriation,” he said. “Certain marketing agencies are using this to deliberately confuse consumers by promoting the view that substituting one product for another has no impact on the nutritional intake. This path may be paved with good intentions, but in the long term it will open the door to the arrival of other con- fusing denominations. ... We are about to create a ‘brave new world’ where marketing is disconnected from the real nature of products; one which blithely amalgamates big business interests and values,” he added.


Vote disappoints meat sector In late October, MEPs voted 284 in favour of the amendment and 379 against, with 27 abstentions. The MEPs, however, did approve an amendment to further limit the use of dairy-relat- ed names for plant-based dairy alternatives such as ‘cheese substitute’ and ‘yoghurt-style’. EU law has already banned the use of ‘milk’, ‘cheese’ and ‘butter’ on vegan products that do not come from animals. ‘Soy milk’, for instance, is not allowed but ‘soy drink’ is. “Of course, we are disappointed with the re- sult of the vote,” said Lava following the announcement, “ given that, initially, back in 2019, we knew that the Agricul- ture Committee supported our amendment. We fail to under- stand the logic of those MEPs who voted an amendment to protect milk denominations but rejected our amendment to have the same protection for meat,” he added. The organisation plans to continue its efforts to protect meat denominations. “We know that nationally, some member states have already put forward some initiatives to protect meat sales denomination,” said Lava, pointing to France. “This shows that our argument is justified”. In the meantime, Lava suggests that the meat-alternative sector should follow its own path and get creative with new names, as margarine producers once did. They did not hijack the term ‘butter’ to promote the new alternative, he pointed out. “Today the two denominations coexist and margarine has become a popular alternative to butter,” he said in conclusion. “We would wel- come it if these companies were to invest the money they have spent on lobbying to create their own marketing con- cepts, to capture a demand from consumers for meat alternatives that indubitably exists”.


Paul-Henri Lava, senior policy ad- visor at AVEC poultry proces- sors: “We cannot accept that ve- gan or vegetar- ian products use the reputation and heritage of some meat de- nominations to sell products which are completely different”.


▶ POULTRY WORLD | No. 10, 2020 23


PHOTO: ANP/DURSUN AYDEMIR


PHOTO: ANP/JACO KLAMER


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