To understand the political and legal situation between Switzer-land, Germany and Austria, and consequently the relationship between Switzerland and the EU, one needs to know the historical background. The most important aspect of recent history is the fact that not only is Switzerland not a member of the EU but it also does not even belong to the European Economic Area (EEA). This has resulted in significant differences in organic regulations and the legal framework of certification, leading to serious consequences, especially for small and medium sized enterprises.

The relationship between Switzer-land, Germany and Austria has been entrenched and difficult since medieval times. In current times it is no different. For a start, there is the strange fact that the Swiss Government sent an official application to the EU to start the membership negotiations – 19 years ago! The application is resting in peace in an archive box in Brussels. This is where it is likely to stay, at least in the near future, as with just about 19% of the population in favour, EU membership is not an issue in Switzerland for the time being.

The problem was that in 1992 the Government acted without the backup of Parliament. In the same year a public referendum recorded a 50.3% majority against integration and EEA-membership (as a first step) and this put a hold on the integration path. Since then a complex framework of ‘bilateral contracts’ has been established between the EU and Switzerland in an attempt to solve the practical problems of this situation.

Mutual recognition – bilateral contracts – but still many problems.

How does the political position affect the legal situation in the area of organic regulation? It was also at that time, around 1992, that the EU Organic Regulation was established, but as Switzerland was not a member of the EU it never directly applied to Swiss operators. This had the important side effect that there was no official organic standard when Coop, one of the main Swiss retailers, entered the organic market in 1993. Coop was followed by Migros, and by the mid 1990s many other retail stores were selling into the organic market. The Bio Suisse standard, which has a very strong market position, became the quasi official base for all the organic standards until the Swiss organic regulation was finally introduced in 1997.

From the beginning the EU Regulation and Bio Ordinance, the Swiss regulation, maintained a status of mutual recognition. The Swiss Bio Ordinance plays an important role as a legal base for the different label programmes. In Swiss agriculture Bio Suisse, which is recognised by other organic label programmes, is still by far the dominant standard in Switzerland.

Swiss imports and exports have been seriously hindered by the consequent legal restrictions that are the result of this situation. The consequences go far beyond the organic sector, and affect the whole agriculture and food regulations area.

Regarding the organic regulation, Switzerland was seen as a ‘third country’ by the EU authorities and vice versa. For every import from and export into the EU there was the obligation to issue a certificate confirming the organic quality of every consignment.

The certificate had to be issued or stamped by the certifiers on both ends of the import/ export chain. In consequence, the organic import and export was usually organised by the few main organic specialised wholesalers, who were used to handling this bureaucracy.

The end of an ‘organic bridge toll’ – but not all of them

After many years of heavy criticism this bureaucracy – a sort of useless ‘organic bridge toll’ – was finally abolished on 1 June 2009 as a side effect of one of the many bilateral agreements between Switzerland and the EU. The only problem is that Bio Suisse has maintained a complex system of import supervision that continues to have a big impact on the administrative procedure. Under the flag of quality management this is also a form of market control.

The overburden of bureaucracy even occurs with organic products certified by traditional organic standards that are generally recognised as equivalent by Bio Suisse, such as Bioland, Gäa, Naturland, Biokreis, Verbund Ökohöfe from Germany and Bio Austria and Erde & Saat from Austria. The Demeter organisations of Germany and Austria are also recognised but not all the branches of the global Demeter movements.

New opportunities for SME

The slow but steady liberalisation of the legal situation between Switzerland and the EU has improved the situation for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The benefits have been felt, not only in the classic trade sector, but also in processing right through to the export of high quality organic products. The Swiss market is certainly becoming more accessible for processed organic products from SMEs in Germany and Austria.

The main focus is on the traditional organic trade and retail market, in which organic labels and certification standards are common and acceptance is high. Of the two big retails chains, Coop requires all organic products to be certified by the Bio Suisse standard, while ‘Migros Bio’ accepts products certified at the EU Organic Regulation level. However, the numerous quality management requirements typical of such large retail chains still put up barriers to smaller companies. In these circumstances, medium sized retail chains like, Manor or Globus, can be an option.

Aldi (Natur aktiv) and Lidl (Bio Trend) have both entered the Swiss market with their own organic brands. They both make a serious attempt at selling a wide range of Swiss products, but also include products from Germany and Austria.

Cooperation beyond the borders

Helped by a regular Swiss presence at BioFach and the network this created, a large number of Swiss organic SMEs that have been able to get established abroad, mainly in the German organic market, with high quality products where they can compete on a premium prize level.

There is an increasing interest among SMEs in the German speaking countries to exchange experiences and information about legal and technical questions concerning the import and export of organic goods as well as many other issues, such as practical sustainability measures and quality development. To strengthen this exchange the Swiss platform for organic processing and trade1 and the German partner organisation Assoziation ökologischer Lebensmittelhersteller2 are presently developing a regular cooperative agreement.

Peter Jossi

Footnotes:

1. See www.bionetz.ch

2. See www.aoel.org

Useful websites:

www.blw.admin.ch/themen/00013/00085/ 00092/index.html?lang=de

www.bionetz.ch/cms/handel/

www.bio-suisse.ch/de/importexport.php