Swiss politicians say imported meat must be better regulated

Foreign meat must be better regulated Keystone-SDA

Meat consumed in Switzerland from imported animals must be better regulated. Following on from the Senate, the House of Representatives narrowly approved a motion to this effect on Thursday.

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The parliamentarians voted against the opinion of their committee, which had recommended rejecting the measure, deemed unworkable in the absence of international regulations.

Fabien Fivaz from the Green Party recalled the often very precarious conditions in which animals are transported abroad. “I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the cargo ships in which the animals are stored. They are often overloaded and the animals die of hunger or thirst,” he said.

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Marianne Maret from the Centre Party said that, in addition to protecting animals, the aim was to support Swiss agriculture. “We currently give imported meat an advantage because there are no requirements on transport. This has an effect on prices. And domestic production, which is highly regulated, is at a disadvantage”, she said.

A section of the right and Interior Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider had tried to sink the project.

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Adapted from French by AI/ts

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