Oat milk can’t mention milk on package, rules Swiss court
A vegan alternative to milk cannot mention the word milk, according to the Swiss Federal Court. In a public hearing on Friday, the judges rejected by four votes to one the appeal lodged by Danone, which was marketing a carton bearing the words "not milk".
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Under Swiss law, milk is defined as “the product of the mammary secretion of an animal classified as a mammal”. This name is protected and cannot be used to describe an alternative to milk. To illustrate this point, one judge said: “If you have to call a spade a spade, you have to call milk milk”.
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In addition, the name on the carton of an oat-based drink is misleading to consumers. In the present case, the packaging marketed by Danone Suisse bore the words ‘SHHH…. THIS IS NOT MILK”, with a white drop replacing the “i” in “MILK”.
In March 2022, the Zurich cantonal laboratory banned this oat-based beverage from the market, claiming that it violated the provisions of the law on foodstuffs.
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The laboratory’s decision was upheld by the Zurich Cantonal Court. Danone Switzerland then appealed to the Federal Court. At a public hearing on Friday morning, the judges rejected the appeal by four votes to one.
Under the law on foodstuffs, the presentation and labelling of foodstuffs must not mislead the consumer, particularly as regards the manufacture, composition and nature of the product in question.
Adapted from French by AI/ts
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