A new report by the European Vegetarian Union shows that 12 EU Member States tax plant-based foods more heavily than their animal-based equivalents. The European Alliance for Plant-based Foods (EAPF) call for equal VAT treatment, so that consumers no longer pay a tax penalty for choosing plant-based.
Brussels, 10 November 2026: Consumers across Europe are paying too much when they choose plant-based foods. report VAT rates of plant-based foods 2026: a level playing field, published today by EAPF member the European Vegetarian Union (EVU), finds that 12 of the 27 EU Member States tax at least one plant-based food at a higher VAT rate than its animal-based equivalent. No Member State does the reverse in any of the 15 product pairs compared.
A tax penalty at the checkout
For shoppers, VAT alone makes a plant-based product up to 21% more expensive at the checkout than its animal-based equivalent with the same pre-tax price. The premium reaches 21.0% in Hungary, 19.0% in Croatia, 17.3% in Italy and 16.0% in Portugal. In Germany, cow’s milk is taxed at 7% VAT, while oat drink on the same shelf is taxed at 19%.
Price is the deciding factor for many shoppers at the shelf. People want to switch to plant-based, and the tax system pushes them back. The penalty hits families on tight budgets first, but also cafés, restaurants and retailers that buy and sell plant-based products.
Plant-based drinks are hit most often: they are taxed above cow’s milk in seven Member States (Austria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia and Spain). Plant-based meat alternatives are taxed above their comparators in six (Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Portugal and Slovakia).
Lower VAT reaches shoppers and farmers
The report shows that tax changes reach the shelf: about 70% of Germany’s temporary 2020 VAT cut was passed on to consumer prices in supermarkets. Retailers that introduced price parity between plant-based and animal-based products reported sales volume increases of 30% or more.
This matters for the EU’s Protein Plan, presented by the European Commission in July 2026, which aims to boost European plant protein production and reduce dependence on imports. Higher VAT on plant-based foods weakens precisely the demand that gives farmers a market for peas, beans, oats and other protein crops.
Thomas Schobesberger, Secretary General of the European Alliance for Plant-based Foods: “Consumers are paying too much for plant-based food. In twelve Member States, people who choose a soy drink or a plant-based burger pay extra tax for the option that is better for the climate and for Europe’s farmers. That is unfair, and it works against the EU’s own Protein Plan. Equal VAT is a simple fix that governments can make tomorrow.”
The unequal treatment also fragments the single market. The report counts 25 different VAT rates across the 33 products surveyed, from 0% in Ireland and Malta to 27% in Hungary, and the same soy drink is taxed at 6% in Belgium, 9% in the Netherlands and 19% in Germany. The Draghi and Letta reports (both 2024) identify such diverging national tax treatment as an obstacle to the internal market and to scaling up emerging European industries.
What EAPF calls for
- The 12 Member States that tax plant-based foods more than their animal-based equivalents should apply the same VAT rate, so that consumers no longer pay more for the plant-based choice.
- The European Commission should issue common guidance on how plant-based foods are classified for VAT, in line with the objectives of the EU Protein Action Plan.
Full report available here.
