Vegan sausage rolls could be banned in Northern Ireland under new EU rules unless manufacturers rename them with terms like 'tubes' or 'discs'. The European Parliament is set to vote on an amendment that would stop plant-based products from using 'meaty terms' in marketing.
The ban applies due to the Windsor Framework, which requires Northern Ireland to follow certain EU regulations, including food labelling rules, that do not apply in Great Britain. However, Greggs vegan sausage rolls, produced in Britain and shipped to Northern Ireland, will be exempt due to a quirk in the Brexit treaty that allows goods sold via the 'green lane' to retain UK branding.
Ulster Unionist MP Robin Swann criticised the 'regulatory absurdity', calling for the Irish Sea border to be scrapped. Timothy Gaston of the Traditional Unionist Voice noted that Northern Ireland is bound by rules it did not make, while Mark Francois of the European Research Group said the situation shows the 'hollow' nature of Labour's EU reset.
The vote on Wednesday is expected to pass with support from the centre-Right European People's Party, hard-Right, and some liberal MEPs. Céline Imart, the centre-Right lead MEP behind the amendment, argued that 'a steak is made of meat – full stop', while Austrian Green MEP Thomas Waitz called it a 'cultural war' started by the far-Right.
The Northern Ireland Assembly could delay the law using the 'Stormont brake', but previous attempts have failed as the UK Government ruled they did not meet the required threshold. A Government spokesman declined to comment on hypothetical scenarios.
