“Vegan” claims are often hollow because they are issued without a standard. Labels that describe products as vegan but lack reliable independent verification carry little weight—anyone can claim their product is vegan. The 12CERT VEGAN certificate is granted to products that contain no animal ingredients and that, through targeted assessments and compliance testing during production, demonstrate that no animals are exploited. With this certification, 12CERT ensures vegetarian and vegan consumers can safely choose products that align with their lifestyle.
Plant-based living is one of the fastest-growing trends in food consumption, with vegan and vegetarian choices expanding rapidly. Global spending already exceeds €100 billion, and nearly 5% of products are described as vegan or vegetarian. Plant-based meat, dairy, fish, and egg alternatives are increasingly replacing their conventional counterparts worldwide, while flexitarians—consumers whose diet is mostly plant-based but who occasionally eat meat—account for up to 90% of the market. Flexitarians are estimated to represent 25–50% of the population depending on the country.
Vegetarianism and veganism are becoming widespread lifestyle choices. Beyond the ethical stance against the slaughter of animals, enormous quantities of energy and feed are consumed to maintain livestock. Veganism is defined as a way of living that seeks to exclude all forms of animal exploitation for food, clothing, or any other purpose. In addition to avoiding meat—as vegetarians do—vegans do not consume milk, eggs, or other animal products and avoid venues that use animals for entertainment.
Despite the strong interest from consumers, these designations are not regulated or protected by law in the food sector or elsewhere. EU Regulation 1169/2011 on voluntary food information (Article 36) refers to future implementing acts that will set requirements around the suitability of food for vegetarians or vegans.
The EU’s “Farm to Fork” strategy encourages a shift towards a more plant-based diet with less red and processed meat and more fruit and vegetables, reducing the risk of life-threatening diseases and lowering the food system’s environmental footprint. Labelling schemes should therefore provide clear information about vegetarian and vegan foods so consumers can make informed choices.
Beyond informing consumers, EU-wide requirements for vegetarian and vegan foods would give the food industry a common marketing framework and avoid different definitions across Member States. Recent international work—such as ISO 23662:2021, which sets out definitions, technical criteria, and labelling requirements for vegetarian and vegan foods and ingredients—can serve as a basis for the EU’s approach.
Definitions from the European Vegetarian Union (EVU) and FoodDrinkEurope for “food suitable for vegans” and “food suitable for vegetarians”:
Food suitable for vegans
Products that are not of animal origin and that, at no stage of production or processing, have used or been supplemented with:
Food suitable for vegetarians
Products that meet the requirements of point 1, with the exception that the following may be used in their production or processing:
Food described as suitable for vegans or vegetarians is not disqualified by the unintentional presence of substances that do not comply with the above requirements, provided that such contamination is unavoidable at any stage of production, processing, and distribution despite appropriate precautions in line with good manufacturing practice.
Nutritional labelling is vital to help consumers make healthy choices. However, Europe currently uses numerous nutrient-labelling schemes based on different principles and methodologies. The concept of nutrient profiles was introduced for health and nutrition claims to prevent misleading marketing practices (including those targeting children) and to encourage reformulation.
Labelling should also deliver complete, transparent information about foods, taking into account every ingredient—both beneficial components (such as vitamins, fibre, minerals, essential fatty acids) and nutrients to limit (such as sugar, salt, and saturated fats)—rather than focusing only on the latter. This is essential if labelling is to inform and educate consumers properly about food and nutrition.
The certification process begins with submitting the relevant application and signing the agreement. We then audit the company’s products, review suppliers and raw materials, and, when the company also produces non-vegetarian or non-vegan products, confirm that there is temporal and/or spatial separation during the preparation of the final goods. Laboratory analyses are conducted in line with the organisation’s risk assessment.