NEW YORK (AFP) – Can a hamburger or steak be labelled “meat” if it is plant-based?
That question has sparked a debate about US food labels as key US cattle industry players have sought to crack down on marketing of proteins made from soy and other plant-based substances.
Jessica Almy, policy director of the non-profit Good Food Institute, which promotes meat-alternatives, said labels must state clearly if a product is made from soy or another plant, but they usually make sense in context.
“Regardless of whether it is made of beef, soy, or wheat, a burger tells you it can be cooked on a grill, placed on a bun, and served with mustard and ketchup,” she said. Ms Almy also sees no alternative to labelling as “meat” new products made from animal cells grown in a lab. Such protein offerings are expected to hit US supermarkets and specialty shops within the next few years.
“These are muscles and fat. It would be extremely misleading to call it other than meat,” said Ms Almy said.
That stance has enraged some in the traditional meat industry, spurring the US Cattlemen’s Association to file a petition to the Agriculture Department to reserving the term “meat” or “beef” to protein derived from slaughtered animals.
“Labels indicating that a product is ‘beef’ should be limited to product from cattle that have been born, raised and harvested in the traditional manner,” the petition said.
The cattle association, which represents ranchers and cattle breeders, said it wants to avoid a similar outcome to the dairy industry, which has seen alternative products made of soy, almond and other non-dairy sources take 10 percent of the “milk” market.
“We started seeing these products put into the meat shelves in the grocery stores with packaging, label and design misleading the consumers into believing that perhaps it is a healthier version of the traditional meat or perhaps this is real beef,” said USCA spokeswoman Lia Biondo.
