K A S H R U T . C O M_©

UK lawmaker brands restrictions on plant-based products as “ludicrous”

January 16, 2023 - from the ProVeg:

"Proposals by the UK to ban dairy descriptor names for plant-based products have been branded “ludicrous” by an MP speaking in the House of Commons this month.

"MP Kerry McCarthy (Labour, Bristol East) was referring to draft guidance that the Department of Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) is currently considering that would effectively ban the use of words such as “alternative to X” or play on words such as “mylk” and “not milk”.

"The MP rightly points out that the EU has already rejected a proposal, known as Amendment 171, to ban terms that evoked reference to dairy products. The UK guidance, should Defra approve it, would be more strict than the rules currently in place on the continent.

"The UK guidance, which was not subject to public consultation, was drafted by a group called the Food Standards and Information Focus Group (FSIFG) and will direct Trading Standards officers’ enforcement activity. The plant based sector was not consulted despite the existence of the Plant-based Food Alliance UK."