Labelling Food Products 'Vegan' vs 'Plant-Based' vs Everything Else.

In light of the seemingly increasing confusion around what I thought were very obvious and self-explanatory terms, I’ve decided to write up a quick refresher on what ‘vegan’ and ‘plant-based’ mean and their appropriate use, particularly when it comes to labelling food products.?

??VEGAN

What is it?

Products that do not contain animal products, have not been tested on animals and have been produced/cooked in designated spaces that are completely free from animal products (this applies to the whole supply chain and cooking processes). More info here.

When should I use this term?

For products that do not contain any animal products and have not been tested on animals or produced/cooked next to animal products. A.k.a. no chance of cross-contamination.?

When should I NOT use this term?

If your product contains animal products or has been cooked/produced in the same kitchen or facilities where animal products are handled.?

What happens if I use this term incorrectly?

You are likely to be regarded as opportunistic and get very bad press, which will result in you losing your brand’s reputation and customers’ trust. And most importantly, you may jeopardise people with severe allergies’ health. Not really worth it, is it?

Example

Violife, a vegan alternative to cheese which is 100% plant-based and vegan; or Burger King’s Vegan Royale, a vegan burger officially certified by The Vegan Society that is prepared in a designated space separately from the meat burgers.

PLANT-BASED

What is it?

Products that are made exclusively of plants, but that may have been produced or prepared in areas where animal products are also handled.?

When should I use this term?

For products that do not contain any animal products (including meat, fish, eggs, dairy or honey). Ideally these products have not been tested on animals or produced/cooked next to animal products, but if they have, I would strongly recommend making the information available to customers.??

When should I NOT use this term?

When your product is not 100% made of plants. For example, a pizza that contains vegan mince and dairy cheese isn’t plant-based, it’s vegetarian.?

What happens if I use this term incorrectly?

This can be a confusing term for a lot of customers that are not familiar with the plant-based world, as well as for vegans or people with strong intolerances unless there’s further clarification on whether the product is vegan-friendly (i.e. it’s made in facilities that are completely free from animal products) or not. Since both plant-based and vegan-friendly are often used interchangeably (although, as far as I am concerned they shouldn’t be), I’d highly encourage using them alongside a short note to ensure customers have all the necessary information to make the purchase confidently. If not, you may not only miss out on that sale and customer, but also risk being exposed on social media and ending up losing a thousand other potential future buyers. The dreaded negative ripple effect...

Example

An example is Burger King’s Plant-Based Whopper, which is made out of plants, but is cooked in the same oil as the rest of the meat burgers.?

Since I’m on it, I’ll touch on a couple of other popular (yet controversial) terms in case it helps:?

??VEGAN-FRIENDLY/SUITABLE FOR VEGANS

These are often used by 1) brands that are vegan, but that choose not to position themselves as such in order to appeal to the wider flexitarian market (Deliciously Ella being a great example, although they’ve recently rebranded their products to ‘100% plant-based’), or 2) vegan products produced by non-vegan brands. In my opinion, both of these terms lead to unnecessary confusion, so I’d highly recommend steering away from them. A product it’s either vegan or not, it’s that simple.

??MEAT-FREE

Similarly, this can be confusing. OK, it’s meat-free, but is it also dairy and egg free (and therefore vegan/plant-based), or not (vegetarian)? My stance on this is using terms that are more widely recognised and that give consumers as much information as possible at a glance.?

??FREE-FROM

As above.

??PLANET-FRIENDLY

One of the most comprehensive studies to date on the food's environmental impact concluded that the lowest-impact animal foods are significantly worse for the planet than the highest-impact vegetables. Therefore, in theory, ‘planet-friendly’ should be synonym of ‘plant-based’. However, given its widespread use for (questionable) marketing purposes and its up-for-interpretation nature, I’d also recommend avoiding it. It may sound appealing in the short term, but opting for simpler terms that help cultivate trust long-term will yield larger returns (pun intended).

??PLANT-FOCUSED

What does this even mean? Avoid completely.

I’ve (admittedly unsuccessfully) tried to keep this short and sweet, so please forgive me if I’ve oversimplified what’s becoming an incredibly complex issue. However, I still believe that labelling food can be a lot more straightforward than this. In my opinion, it all boils down to choosing simplicity over controversy, and always being transparent.?

PS. Kale doesn't suck, I just liked the photo.

Elena Devis