Vegan sausage rolls will have to be renamed in Northern Ireland as the European Union could be set to vote to ban plant-based food sold under “meaty terms”.
Meat-free products in Northern Ireland will have to be sold under new terms, such as “tubes” or “discs”, if Wednesday’s vote in the European Parliament passes. It is backed by a majority of conservative EU lawmakers, as well as some liberal members, to appease farmers.
The possible EU ban will apply because of the Windsor Framework, which ensures that Northern Ireland must follow some of the bloc’s rules that Britain does not, including on food labelling.
The treaty created the Irish Sea border, which kept the land border with the Republic of Ireland invisible after Brexit while introducing checks on British goods.
Unionist politicians in Northern Ireland have complained that the latest vote is evidence of the country being forced to adhere to rules it never backed.
Timothy Gaston, the member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for the Traditional Unionist Voice, told The Telegraph: “Once again, Northern Ireland finds itself bound by rules it did not make, subject to decisions in which no Northern Ireland representative has a vote.
“While the European Parliament debates what a sausage roll can be called, businesses here must brace for yet another layer of regulation that applies in Belfast but not in Birmingham.”
The Northern Ireland Assembly can delay the application of EU law by using the “Stormont brake”, designed to block, at least temporarily, the application of a rule if it has a “significant impact specific to everyday life in Northern Ireland in a way that is liable to persist”.
On the two previous occasions that this brake has been tested, however, the UK government has denied its use, claiming it did not meet the threshold.
It is also unclear whether there is sufficient opposition to this new rule within the assembly.
The name of one vegan sausage roll will nevertheless remain unchanged in Northern Ireland despite the potential ruling: a loophole in the Brexit treaty means that Greggs’ product will escape the possible order.
The loophole allows for certain products made in Britain to be sold under their original name. The pastries are made in Britain before being shipped to two dozen bakeries in Northern Ireland.
They cross the Irish Sea border using the “green lane”, which means they are deemed not at risk of crossing into Ireland.
