What's in a name, really? Quite a bit, according to a recent ruling, at least when that name involves words like bacon, burger, sausage, or any other items traditionally made from meat. The case at issue was brought to the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in September by plant-based meat company Upton's Naturals and the Plant-Based Foods Association (PBFA), two parties that were hoping to see the judge block a law that is potentially discriminatory against plant-based products.

The law in question requires that vegan meat products display the plant-based disclaimer on their packaging as largely and prominently as the brand's name. Upton's Naturals products already feature the word "vegan" on the front of all packaging. But Judge Stephen Friot didn't seem to find the labeling sufficient and he refused to block the law by claiming the labeling of plant-based products is still confusing to the average customer.

"The court has no trouble finding that the speech at issue is potentially misleading. Product packaging which labels a product as 'Classic Burger,' bacon, chorizo, hot dog, jerky, meatballs, or steak, when the product is actually a plant-based product, is potentially misleading to a reasonable consumer," he wrote in his opinion.

Those behind the lawsuit plainly see the law as written intended to help the meat industry at the expense of the rapidly expanding plant-based imitation meat sector. An appeal has been filed with a U.S. district court.