Alt-Protein Groups Say EU’s 35% Protein Feed Target Has a Loophole

The European Commission published its Protein Action Plan alongside a new EU Livestock Strategy this week, setting a target to raise the share of EU-grown protein used in animal feed from 25.8% to 35% by 2035. The plan, which addresses food and feed protein production across the bloc, contains no equivalent binding target for protein grown for direct human consumption. Find out more in our previous coverage here.

Two more organizations have added their own reactions. The Good Food Institute (GFI) Europe and the European Vegetarian Union (EVU) both welcomed the plan’s recognition that Europe needs more homegrown protein crops, but each argued it stops short of the funding and consumption measures needed to reduce reliance on animal agriculture.

A plan without a budget attached

Alex Holst, head of EU policy at GFI Europe, said: “It’s positive that the Protein Action Plan outlines the potential of protein diversification to reduce the EU’s dependence on imported crops, but building a more resilient and healthy food system will require more than warm words.”

He added, “The plan lacks funding commitments to scale up plant-based proteins and fermentation, and proposals to support farmers to grow the crops needed for these foods.”

The organization pointed to Denmark’s €68 million bonus scheme for farmers who grow protein crops as an example the plan could have built on, and cited a recent report from consultancy Systemiq projecting that China could cut soy imports by 25% by 2030 while meeting up to 55% of domestic animal protein demand through alternative proteins by 2050, framing the comparison as a competitiveness risk for the EU.

A target that doesn’t require new farming

The EVU’s critique centers on the plan’s sole quantified goal, the 25.8% to 35% by 2035 feed target. Rafael Pinto, Senior Policy Manager at the EVU, explained that the target “could be easily achieved in the next few years simply by increasing human consumption of plant proteins, since our current dependency is caused by imbalanced diets.”

Pinto called the plan “an important milestone, clearly signalling that plant proteins are central to Europe’s future food system,” but said it “still falls short on concrete measures to solve the EU’s protein imbalance,” pointing to the absence of a target balancing plant and animal protein production and consumption, or dedicated funding to support it.

The EVU’s renewed call for a standalone EU plant-based action plan echoes ProVeg’s own push on the same point. “This is the beginning rather than the end of the conversation. We look forward to working with EU institutions, member states and industry to ensure that Europe’s protein future is diverse, resilient and competitive,” Pinto said.