Nutrition is before housing and mobility the area of consumption and production with the greatest effects on the environment. A variety of levers and approaches can be used to make food healthier and more resource-efficient. There is a great deal of potential to produce food in a more resource-friendly way and to rely on more sustainable and more plant-based products. This also benefits health. Other possibilities include setting the right financial incentives, adapting the range of food on offer in shops and restaurants, and reducing food waste.
Lever “Institute true-cost pricing”
Lever “Set incentives for resource-efficient production within the carrying capacity of ecosystems”
Lever “Promote seasonal and regional ranges in shops and restaurants”
Lever “Harness synergies between healthy and resource-efficient diets”
Lever “Avoid food waste”
- Extended producer responsibility
- Apply environmental and social standards (CSR) to production abroad
- Trade agreements: Include environmental and social standards
- Factor in external costs
- Declare environmental impact (e.g. imports by air)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
- Introduce a sustainability standard for Swiss farming
- Review licensing criteria for PPP
- Monetise ecosystem services such as pollination, beneficial insects
- Gear direct payments more closely to site-adapted production and plant-based foodn
- Increase grass-fed milk and meat production
- Promote sustainable production systems that close nutrient cycles and use alternatives to PPP and veterinary drugs
- Conclude industry agreements (e.g. to stop using peat)
- Work with food and nutrition networks (e.g. city food forums)
- Focus training and advice more closely on current sustainability standards and certifications (e.g. organic farming)
- Use technology to make efficiency gains with precision farming
- Support alternative farming methods: permaculture, agroforestry, urban farming
- Offer regional contract farming with direct selling (within walking/cycling distance of major residential areas)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
- Apply sustainable procurement standards in invitations to tender for staff restaurants
- Declare products used in menus; use digital options
- Federal government and corporate sector: seek sector solutions and agree targets
- Raise awareness of food service operators of menu design and options to nudge diners in certain directions (Menu 1 being the sustainable option, for example)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
- Environmental factors to be increased and integrated in the Swiss Nutrition Policy
- Cooperate with networks at regional and local level (e.g. city food forums)
- Promote food and nutrition knowledge and practical skills
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
- Permit food waste from catering operations to be used as animal feed
- Make it possible to donate unsaleable food to charitable organisations
- Adjust standards and norms for retail fruit and vegetables
- Raise consumer awareness of meaning of best-before dates on end products
- Encourage nose-to-tail use
- Develop and support product innovations based on by-products
- Support business models to sell production surpluses
- Promote the sale of non-standard fruit and vegetables
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
Producing food in an environmentally-friendly way
There is a particular need for action in food production. In order to meet the environmental targets in agriculture, substantial progress is still needed so as not to exceed the carrying capacity of ecosystems. This is shown by the agro-environmental indicators, which provide an overview of the environmental development of Swiss agriculture. According to this, nitrogen surpluses, which affect water bodies, soils, air, climate and biodiversity, are still too high and have been stagnating since the late 1990s. Around a quarter of these surpluses can be attributed to imported feed for Swiss animal production. While around 60% of Switzerland’s arable land is used to grow animal feed, of the 15 million livestock in the country, poultry, pigs and dairy cows rely on concentrated feed, half of which comes from abroad. This includes cereals such as wheat, maize, rice, corn and barley, but particularly soya. This feed and the arable land used to cultivate it competes directly with food for humans. If Swiss agriculture only used domestic feed, it could still produce over half the current quantities of meat and would cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 40%. More broadly, resources could also be saved in agricultural production by using less mineral fertiliser and plant protection products.
Possible solutions “Set incentives for resource-efficient production within the carrying capacity of ecosystems”
- Introduce a sustainability standard for Swiss farming
- Review licensing criteria for PPP
- Monetise ecosystem services such as pollination, beneficial insects
- Gear direct payments more closely to site-adapted production and plant-based foodn
- Increase grass-fed milk and meat production
- Promote sustainable production systems that close nutrient cycles and use alternatives to PPP and veterinary drugs
- Conclude industry agreements (e.g. to stop using peat)
- Work with food and nutrition networks (e.g. city food forums)
- Focus training and advice more closely on current sustainability standards and certifications (e.g. organic farming)
- Use technology to make efficiency gains with precision farming
- Support alternative farming methods: permaculture, agroforestry, urban farming
- Offer regional contract farming with direct selling (within walking/cycling distance of major residential areas)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
Links [Weitere Info]
Long-term climate strategy to 2050
Die Strategie zeigt für den Teilbereich Landwirtschaft und Ernährung mögliche Klimaziele und Emissionsentwicklungen (sog. Emissionspfade) auf.
Setting the right financial incentives and true-cost pricing
Key to Switzerland’s food and nutrition system is agricultural policy and the associated support for the agricultural sector, consisting of border protection and direct payments and other subsidies. This can give rise to disincentives, which encourage intensive farming and high livestock numbers. Furthermore, some subsidies can cause direct and severe damage to biodiversity. As also set out in the Federal Constitution, when reviewing the system of direct payments, the conditions should be geared more heavily towards all sustainability goals to ensure food production that is adapted to local conditions and takes place within the carrying capacity of ecosystems. For a sustainable food and nutrition system, crop production needs to be strengthened.
Possible solutions “Institute true-cost pricing”
Possible solutions “Set incentives for resource-efficient production within the carrying capacity of ecosystems”
- Extended producer responsibility
- Apply environmental and social standards (CSR) to production abroad
- Trade agreements: Include environmental and social standards
- Factor in external costs
- Declare environmental impact (e.g. imports by air)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
- Introduce a sustainability standard for Swiss farming
- Review licensing criteria for PPP
- Monetise ecosystem services such as pollination, beneficial insects
- Gear direct payments more closely to site-adapted production and plant-based foodn
- Increase grass-fed milk and meat production
- Promote sustainable production systems that close nutrient cycles and use alternatives to PPP and veterinary drugs
- Conclude industry agreements (e.g. to stop using peat)
- Work with food and nutrition networks (e.g. city food forums)
- Focus training and advice more closely on current sustainability standards and certifications (e.g. organic farming)
- Use technology to make efficiency gains with precision farming
- Support alternative farming methods: permaculture, agroforestry, urban farming
- Offer regional contract farming with direct selling (within walking/cycling distance of major residential areas)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
Harness synergies between healthyand resource-efficient diets
Marketing influences consumption decisions, as it predominantly advertises products from the top layer of the food pyramid, such as desserts. It is also important to educate people about eating a diet that is both healthier and more environmentally sustainable. But this also requires a corresponding range to be available in stores and product transparency, for which the food-producing companies are largely responsible.
Possible solutions “Harness synergies between healthy and resource-efficient diets”
- Environmental factors to be increased and integrated in the Swiss Nutrition Policy
- Cooperate with networks at regional and local level (e.g. city food forums)
- Promote food and nutrition knowledge and practical skills
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
Links [Weitere Info]
Bundesamt für Lebensmittelsicherheit und Veterinärwesen BLV: Ernährung
Ausgewogene Ernährung ist ein wichtiger Faktor für einen gesunden Lebensstil. Trotz eines reichlichen Angebotes ist es nicht einfach, sich für gesunde Lebensmittel zu entscheiden. Daher schafft das BLV mit der Schweizer Ernährungsstrategie Voraussetzungen, um die Wahl gesunder Lebensmittel zu erleichtern.
Promoting resource-efficient offerings in the retail and food service sectors
The range of products available and product placement in grocery stores play a key part in product choices for consumers, as does the time they have available for shopping, cooking and eating. Meanwhile, consumption of highly processed and therefore resource- and energy-intensive foods has been continually rising for a number of years. The same goes for products imported from South America, Africa or other continents, such as tropical and sub-tropical fruits and nuts.
Swiss households spend around 5% of their income on meals in restaurants, cafés, bars, canteens and from takeaways. Corporate and community catering also has a significant influence on healthy and resource-saving menus, for example in schools, care homes and businesses.
Possible solutions “Promote seasonal and regional ranges in shops and restaurants”
- Apply sustainable procurement standards in invitations to tender for staff restaurants
- Declare products used in menus; use digital options
- Federal government and corporate sector: seek sector solutions and agree targets
- Raise awareness of food service operators of menu design and options to nudge diners in certain directions (Menu 1 being the sustainable option, for example)
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
Weitere Info
Empfehlungen für die nachhaltige öffentliche Beschaffung im Bereich Ernährung (PDF, 639 kB, 25.11.2020)Hintergrunddokument mit detaillierten Beschaffungskriterien
Preventing waste from field to fork
Reducing food waste also has great potential as a way of reducing the environmental impact of food. Halving these losses by 2030 would reduce the environmental impact of food by 10% to 15%. This is despite the fact that a large portion of this waste is used as feed or to produce energy. There is significant saving potential from an environmental perspective in particular in animal products and waste at the end of the value chain, so in retail, in food service and in households, as the negative impacts accumulate along the chain.
The Federal Council’s action plan to tackle food waste seeks to halve avoidable food waste in Switzerland by 2030 compared with 2017 levels, and to achieve the greatest possible reduction in environmental impact from avoidable food waste by defining and prioritising measures.
Possible solutions “Avoid food waste”
- Permit food waste from catering operations to be used as animal feed
- Make it possible to donate unsaleable food to charitable organisations
- Adjust standards and norms for retail fruit and vegetables
- Raise consumer awareness of meaning of best-before dates on end products
- Encourage nose-to-tail use
- Develop and support product innovations based on by-products
- Support business models to sell production surpluses
- Promote the sale of non-standard fruit and vegetables
Legend
- Statutory frameworks / federal government strategies
- Transport and spatial planning / infrastructures
- Financial and tax incentives
- Funding programmes
- Public sector as role model
- Transparency / product information
- Cooperation / dialogue
- Training / awareness-raising
- Innovation / research / pilot projects
- New business models
Further information
Links
Meine Wahl bei der Ernährung - Werkzeugkasten
Eine Initiative der Konferenz der Vorsteher der Umweltschutzämter der Schweiz (CCE/KVU)
Documents
Vollzugshilfe Umweltschutz in der Landwirtschaft - Übersicht über alle Module
This publication does not exist in English. It is available in other languages.
Umweltatlas: Lieferketten Schweiz (PDF, 3 MB, 03.04.2024)Im Auftrag des BAFU
This publication does not exist in English. It is available in other languages.
News
Last modification 16.12.2022
