In this file photo from Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015, a BurgerFi restaurant employee prepares to add cheese to a veggie burger as she grills an order at the Aventura, Fla., restaurant. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Plant-based products that do not contain meat can continue to be labeled “sausages” or “burgers,” European lawmakers said Friday, when they rejected a proposal back by the meat industry to ban the terms.
In votes on issues relating to agricultural products, the European Parliament said that so-called veggie burgers, soy steaks and vegan sausages can continue to be sold as such in restaurants and shops across the union.
Europe’s largest farmers' association, Copa-Cogeca, had supported a ban, arguing that labeling vegetarian substitutes with designations bringing meat to mind was misleading for consumers.
On the opposite side of the debate, a group of 13 organizations including Greenpeace and WWF urged lawmakers to reject the proposed amendments, arguing that a ban would have not only exposed the EU “to ridicule," but also damaged its environmental credibility.
They said promoting a shift toward more plant-based diet is in line with the EU Commission's ambition to tackle global warming. Losing the ability to use the terms steak or sausage might make those plant-based products more obscure for consumers.
After the vote, the European Consumer Organization, an umbrella group bringing together consumers' associations, praised the MEPs for their “common sense."
“Consumers are in no way confused by a soy steak or chickpea-based sausage, so long as it is clearly labeled as vegetarian or vegan," the group said in a statement. “Terms such as ‘burger’ or ‘steak’ on plant-based items simply make it much easier for consumers to know how to integrate these products within a meal."
Together with Greenpeace, the group regretted that lawmakers accepted further restrictions on the naming of alternative products containing no dairy. Terms like ‘almond milk’ and ‘soy yogurt’ are already banned in Europe after the bloc's top court ruled in 2017 that purely plant-based products can't be marketed using terms such as milk, butter or cheese, which are reserved for animal products.
e.l.f Beauty is celebrating a significant milestone in its sustainable journey. Since launching its Project Unicorn initiative in 2019, the company has eliminated more than one million pounds of packaging materials. Ashley Rosebrook, e.l.f. Beauty's chief creative officer, who spearheaded this effort and has continued to work to reduce the brand's carbon footprint, joined Cheddar to discuss this initiative and what the company aims to do next.
The great meme stock frenzy of 2021 turned ordinary retail investors into big winners overnight. One of those traders, Jon Murray, is a graphic design artist who made $15,000 off his original investments in GameStop and AMC. He joined Cheddar to talk about how he first got started in investing and why he decided to put money into meme stocks.
The Omicron variant is raising concerns about how safe it is to travel, just as millions of Americans were getting ready to jet set away for the holidays. Scientists are still trying to understand how much protection vaccines offer against the new variant, and many questions remain unanswered. Sara Nelson, President of the Association of Flight Attendants, gives tips on how to travel safely and comments on the aviation industry's ongoing recovery from the pandemic.
Another successful spaceflight is in the books for Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. The company's third human spaceflight blasted off from Van Horn, TX. on Saturday, lasting about ten minutes from takeoff to landing. The crew, which included former NFL star and current GMA host Michael Strahan, traveled to the edge of space and experienced a few minutes of weightlessness before the capsule descended back to earth. Andrew Chanin, CEO of ProcureAM, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss the significance of the launch.
Chad Oviatt, Director of Investment Management at Huntington Private Bank, discusses inflationary concerns the Fed is keeping an eye on and what November's lower-than-expected rise in retail sales means for consumer spending.
After nearly two years of the pandemic, U.S. consumers are ready to spend big this holiday season. However, shoppers may be faced with limited inventory as the U.S. continues to face shortages of key products and extended order backlogs. Per Hong, partner at consulting firm Kearney, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss the country's path forward.
The U.S. is preparing to add more China-based firms to a blacklist in response to human rights violations in the country. This includes the leading drone manufacturer DJI. American businesses will be barred from investing or conducting business with the blacklisted companies.
