Doner meat could soon be a thing of the past (Peter Steffen/dpa file via AP)

They’re the staple of people’s after-drinks diets across Europe, but the humble doner kebab could soon be outlawed.

Legislation has been put forward by the European Union that would make them illegal because of the phosphates that they contain.

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The food, which originated in Turkey, could be banned because of their links to cardiovascular disease.

But takeaway owners are hitting back, particularly in Germany, saying that doner meat need the additives to keep it juicy and full of flavour, both while being transported and on their rotisseries.

There have been accusations of ‘doner discrimination’ because some sausages that contain phosphates would still be allowed.

There are accusations of doner discrimination over the proposed ban (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

‘They are looking for ways to hurt Turkish businesses here,’ said Baris Donmez, the owner of a 24-hour kebab bistro in Berlin’s Mitte district. ‘Such a ban would be the biggest pile of garbage imaginable.’

The kebab issue came up when the EU’s executive Commission proposed to officially authorise the use of phosphates in the lamb, mutton, beef or veal that goes onto a shop spit. Some other meats had previously received such clearance.

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The proposal ran into trouble in the European Parliament earlier this week when its Health Committee voted 32-22 to oppose it. Based on more recent health studies, legislators expressed concern that carving out blanket approval for kebab meat could put Europeans at greater risk of heart disease.

A rejection by the full Parliament when it meets in two weeks would send the proposal back to the Commission – and keep the mighty kebab lingering in limbo.

Just the threat of any changes to the beloved dish – in Europe, shaved kebab meat usually comes stuffed into pita bread with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, onions and one, or several, dressings – made headlines in Germany, where the doner kebab is the late night grub of choice.

Doner kebabs originated in Turkey but have become popular across Europe (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

‘If the European Parliament gets its way, this would be the death sentence for the entire doner kebab industry in the European Union,’ Kenan Koyuncu of the German Association of Doner Kebab Producers told Germany’s Bild daily newspaper.

Renate Sommer, a member of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative party in the European Parliament, wrote on Facebook that ‘a ban of the phosphate addition would be the end of doner production and would lead to the loss of thousands of jobs.’

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According to daily Frankfurter Rundschau there are some 16,000 doner restaurants in Germany and 3 million of the dishes are slung daily. Tens of thousands of people are employed in the multi-billion euro industry.

The doner sandwich is in fact a recent European interpretation of the Turkish roast classic which was introduced to Germany by immigrants from Turkey. In recent years the ‘Berlin doner’ variety has even spread to London and New York.

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Boosted by such popularity, Donmez is convinced the ban of the chemical in kebab meat will never be implemented in Germany.

‘Germans love doner,’ he said, looking at the long line of lunch customers at his Rosenthaler Grill und Schlemmerbuffet restaurant. ‘Nobody’s going to take away it away from them.