Migros and Coop reject the obligation to declare food flown in

Papaya from Brazil, bananas from Colombia and dates from Israel. Many of the foods in our supermarkets have had a long journey. Switzerland imports about half of its food, most of which comes from Europe.

It must be stated where a product was grown or manufactured. But not how the product ended up in Switzerland.

By van? Ship? Aeroplane?

The information is usually not found. Because labeling is not mandatory.

State councilor Christine Badertscher wants to change that. The Green politician has submitted a parliamentary initiative, which has also been signed by the chairman of the farmers’ association, Markus Ritter (center, SG). In concrete terms, when importing fresh food in the future, the type of transport must be indicated.

Consumers would therefore be better able to shop more sustainably. Because: Importing food transported by air has a worse ecological balance than food arriving by ship.

In 2021, around 2 percent of all imported food was flown to Switzerland, with fresh fish being the most common. About 4 percent of imported fish comes to Switzerland by air. When it comes to meat imports, the share is 2 to 3 percent. For vegetables and fruit this is less than one percent. But that is still 7,357 tons.

The change in law was approved by the WWF and the Consumer Protection Foundation (SKS). “It makes little sense that in this area, just like with the labels, each supplier cooks its own soup,” Josianne Walpen, nutritionist at SKS, told the “Tagesanzeiger”.

According to their own statements, retailers Migros and Coop already place a ‘by air’ sticker on food imported by air. At Migros, the share of air freight goods is only 0.27 percent of the total sales volume. Coop does not disclose figures.

IG Retail Switzerland rejects a labeling requirement for practical reasons and points out that there is no obligation abroad. “Realistically, due to the small Swiss market, it cannot be assumed that international manufacturers will make the declaration and therefore special packaging only for the Swiss market and if so, this will lead to price increases,” writes the interest group, which is before Migros, Coop and Denner said in a statement.

Lidl and Aldi have no longer sold fruit and vegetables since the beginning of 2023. The motion is available for consultation until January 22, 2024.