The arrival of veggie meat dishes on Parisian steakhouse menus with names such as “tenderloin” and “flank” poses a challenge to French government efforts to ban meat names for plant-based products.
The global market for plant-based meat-like food has been booming, attracting major investment from global agri-food groups that hope to capitalize on a trend toward eating less red meat. New technologies are making such products look more authentic and appetizing.
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The products of Redefine Meat made their debut in a Parisian restaurant last week after the Israeli start-up firm struck a deal with importer Giraudi Meats to drive European distribution of its “New Meat” steak cuts produced on 3D printers.
However, the French government, backed by farmers and the meat industry, has been trying to ban the use of meat and fish names for plant-based protein food in an effort to avoid confusion over the meat alternatives.
France’s highest administrative court suspended a government ban due to take effect this month, saying it gave operators too little time to adapt. The agriculture ministry told Reuters it was working on a new text taking into account the court recommendations, without giving a time frame.
It remained unclear whether the ban would apply to imported products and to menus or be limited to French labels.
