Labeling ‘mistake’: Aldi sells German meat under the Swiss flag

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Two Swiss flags hang on the shelf. The price is cheap: 3.68 francs. Alpina branded “Rauchmöckli” sold at Aldi Suisse’s Lausanne branch seems very Swiss at first glance. It’s just: there’s a catch. Because if you look closely, you will notice that there is a sticker on the back of the packaging that reads “Elaboré en Suisse avec de viande de DE/CH”. In other words: the product is made from German and Swiss beef.

Is this the case at the discounter’s other stores as well? Why is a food that comes partially from a neighboring country marked with a white cross? Doesn’t this mislead customers? Is this legal? Blick Romandie asked the German discounter these questions.

Tags will be changed soon

The press office of Aldi Suisse wrote in its email dated June 2nd: “Due to an error, the Swiss flag was lost on the price tag of the wrong product. The ‘Rauchmöckli’ cured meat should not really have a Swiss flag on it”. It is emphasized that the flag “rightfully” is not on the packaging.

The company apologizes for “this misunderstanding”. “We’ve already adjusted the information in our system and will change the price tags in the affected branches as soon as possible,” says Aldi. How many branches are affected? «The product is part of our standard range. Therefore, a large part of our branches are affected,” says Aldi.

a complex law

The use of the federal coat of arms and symbols such as Wilhelm Tell, Matterhorn or Helvetia for advertising purposes is regulated by the Federal Law on the Protection of Trademarks and Reference Marks. The criteria are strict. But there are exceptions.

What about smoked meat? In this case, “The Swiss flag can be used if at least 80 percent by weight of the raw materials that make it up come from Switzerland and the processing that gives it its essential characteristics – smoking here – has taken place in Switzerland », Nicolas of the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE) Guyot explains.

avoid deception

Purpose: any deception should be avoided. Only: The Swiss flag is clearly visible in the photos. “It stands out and is used to indicate that it is a Swiss product,” says the vice president of the industrial property legal service. He concludes: “As a result, the two aforementioned criteria for this meat must be met cumulatively.”

In particular, this means: “If more than 20 percent of the weight of the meat in a package comes from Germany, it is illegal to use the Swiss flag,” sums up Nicolas Guyot. This actually solves the question. Or almost: Because when asked by Blick, Aldi didn’t specify how much German meat was in these “reassembled” sausage products.

Source :Blick