Louisiana Label Censorship Law Found Unconstitutional After First Amendment Challenge from Tofurky
Meat and dairy alternatives can use common naming conventions in the state without fear of prosecution
The US District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana granted a motion for summary judgment that halts enforcement of a Louisiana labeling law in favor of Tofurky, a plant-based food company represented by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and the Good Food Institute. The Court has ruled the law is an unconstitutional restriction of free speech under the First Amendment. The law, which went into effect on Oct. 1, 2020, imposed fines of up to $500 per day for every marketing representation of plant-based meat products that use terms like “burger” and “sausage.” Under the law, plant-based meat products were prohibited from using those terms even when accompanied by clear modifiers like “vegan,” “veggie,” or “plant-based” on their labels.
The lawsuit, filed on Oct. 7, 2020, argued the Louisiana law violates Tofurky’s First Amendment right to free speech by improperly censoring truthful commercial speech. The lawsuit also noted there is no evidence that current labels mislead consumers, pointing out that Tofurky’s products all clearly indicate the products are plant-based, meatless, vegetarian, or vegan. In fact, studies show removing “meat” terminology from plant-based meat product labels would cause consumer confusion where none existed before.