The company has announced that it wants to contribute to the protection of the environment by eliminating the so-called “flying fruit and vegetables.” The discounter now bans fruit and vegetables brought by plane from its stores and, according to his own statements, wants to save 5,000 tons of CO₂ per year.
Competitor Lidl has been giving up on fruit and vegetables brought by plane since its launch in Switzerland. As of 2020, meat and fish products transported by air are also sold.
Migros and Coop continue to fly
The situation is different for the two strongest retailers in Switzerland: Migros and Coop do not want to do without importing vegetables and fruits brought by plane. A Migros spokesperson says, “No air transportation is not a problem right now.”
In general, the rate of flying fruit and vegetables in Migros is less than 1 percent of the product range. The transport of these materials caused 18,000 tons of CO₂ emissions. You make up for this through your own climate foundation in collaboration with Myclimate.
In Coop, it is said that air transport cannot be completely avoided due to the short shelf life of some products. “If we were to do without it completely, we wouldn’t be able to offer our customers the same wide range of exotic fruits and vegetables as we do today,” a spokesperson said.
range restriction or environmental protection
If you want to sell fresh asparagus or exotic fruit ripening on the tree in the middle of winter, of course you won’t be buying from local suppliers. Therefore, Aldi is aware that the latest decision will result in restrictions on the range.
“If a product that is not suitable for shipping is no longer available in Europe for seasonal reasons, we will not continue to offer it,” says a company spokesperson. This is also the case with products such as blackberries, for example.
However, the two major retailers do not want to limit their product range and refer to the personal responsibility of the customer. “With what we offer, we basically tailor our customers’ needs and give them freedom of choice,” says Coop.
Migros “By Air” logo has no effect
Migros adds that products are declared transparently in order to give customers the right to choose. Specifically, fruit and vegetables brought by air will be marked with the “By Air” logo. This should make it clear to customers that purchasing the product is not very ecological.
But in practice this does not seem to deter consumers from buying. According to a Coop spokesperson, demand for products marked as air cargo imports has remained stable since the logo was introduced.
This did not surprise Greenpeace climate expert Georg Klingler. He explains that there are many more factors than such a logo that influence the customer’s purchasing decision, such as the placement of the goods, the price or any promotion.
“Therefore, it is more important for retailers to take responsibility and ensure they become more sustainable than putting the responsibility on consumers.”
7357 tons were imported by plane
According to figures from the Federal Office of Customs and Border Security, 7,357 tons of fresh fruit and vegetables were imported by plane to Switzerland in 2021. Its total value was 56 million Swiss francs. This results in an average weight of 7.60 francs. This high price per kilo indicates that retailers mainly import high-priced fruit and vegetables by plane.
Fruit and vegetables account for 9.2 percent of all goods imported by plane. This makes it the product category with the highest air imports. Even before machines and clothes. (SDA/shq)