COOL is not a discussion in Switzerland. It just is.
“Country-of-origin regulations are actually always protection for a country’s own producers,” said Hans Schneebeli of the province of Zurich’s food safety department.
Almost all fresh meat, even in the big grocery chains, seems to be from Switzerland, even though meat is produced much cheaper in the surrounding European Union.
Packages are marked “Swiss meat” or “Swiss product,” but Schneebeli said consumers must be careful because there is a clear distinction between the two.
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A Swiss product can be packaged in Switzerland but be of foreign origin. The Swiss flag doesn’t necessarily guarantee Swiss origin.
Labelling isn’t the only way Switzerland discourages foreign meat.
“Often the customs tax is more expensive than the meat,” said Swiss butcher Eddie Mueller.
That especially applies to better cuts of meat.
Stringent Swiss laws don’t allow the use of antibiotics and hormones to stimulate growth, and all poultry must be free run.
All imports produced using forbidden Swiss practices must be declared as such, even in restaurants.
However, the legislation doesn’t apply when the product is mixed in with large amounts of other ingredients, such as eggs in noodles.
Ever increasing pressure from consumer, animal rights and environmental lobbies have prompted grocery store chains to go beyond the standard.
They have produced labels such as Natura Beef, in which calves stay with their mothers until slaughter at 10 months and have continued access to the outdoors, and Bio Weide Beef, in which cattle are raised on organic pastures but not necessarily with their mothers.
Smaller labels, such as Heidi Beef, St. Gallen meat and Terra Suisse, have their own specific regulations that are tightly controlled.
“Swiss labels sell,” Schneebeli said. “The consumer has the security of knowing how that food was produced.”
However, the system can be frustrating for farmers.
“Declaration is a huge problem,” said Henry Stamm, head of business management/controlling for Coop Switzerland.
“It gets more complex the farther down the chain you go.”
That means an enormous amount of paperwork for farmers to ensure traceability and accountability and continual adjustments in on-farm practices and equipment to comply with the regulations.
Farmers must report every movement of every animal to a national beef databank.
A similar databank is planned for other animals.
