2023-07-07 18:12:40
From 2024 there will be mandatory labeling for meat in supermarkets. A system with five husbandry categories during fattening from the legal minimum standard to organic is planned.
Berlin.
At the refrigerated counter, in the canteen, in the restaurant: When buying meat in the supermarket and eating out, it should soon be clearer under which conditions food is produced.
Federal Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir (Greens) can now launch two new labels, for which the Federal Council has cleared the way. An animal husbandry logo for meat is now being introduced. And there should be a logo for the organic share in canteen kitchens in the medal colors gold, silver and bronze. In addition, information on the country of origin of the animals should be mandatory for more meat products.
Özdemir made it clear in the Federal Council that progress is now being made in the overdue conversion of animal husbandry to higher standards. With the husbandry logo, the farmer’s achievements for animal welfare would be visible. “Above all, consumers can reliably recognize and decide which meat from which farm they buy and thus give the market a direction.”
The federal states once again campaigned for the labeling to be expanded quickly – and for permanent funding to be created so that farms are not left with additional costs for better animal husbandry.
An overview of the two new logos and an extension of indications of origin approved by the Federal Council:
The mandatory animal husbandry logo
The law provides for mandatory labeling for domestic products from 2024. It should initially start with pork in the trade. A system with five categories is planned when piglets are fed after rearing. It begins with the “stable” form of housing with the minimum legal requirements. The “Stable+Space” level provides 12.5 percent more space, “Fresh air stable” contact with the outdoor climate. In addition, there are the levels “outdoor/pasture” and “organic”.
The logo should look objective and sober: a white, rounded rectangle with “animal husbandry” written in a black frame. The housing form then shows a smaller rectangle filled in black – with five small rectangles for the five categories. In the case of mixed products such as minced meat or large packs of meat from several husbandry types, percentages can also appear in the small rectangles: for example “70% stable” and “30% stable+space”.
The traffic light coalition has already announced that extensions to sausage and gastronomy will soon follow, as will sows and piglets. But there is already competition in the refrigerated counters – a long-established form of husbandry labeling by the large supermarket chains, which also includes several other animal species.
The voluntary organic medals
So that diners can see at a glance how “organic” a kitchen is, suppliers will soon be able to use a circular logo in the three medal colors. It shows a knife and a fork on the right and the percentage of organic products on the left, based on the monetary value of the entire purchase. For the gold logo, it must be 90 to 100 percent organic, silver 50 to 89 percent and bronze 20 to 49 percent.
This would allow providers to “voluntarily, easily and verifiably mark their commitment to sustainable catering and thus advertise themselves,” Özdemir said. This is aimed at canteens and canteens of companies, schools, day care centers or authorities. However, the regulation covers all out-of-home catering, including snack bars and restaurants.
The logo is intended to help boost organic demand. Because the declared goal is a proportion of organically farmed fields and meadows of 30 percent by 2030. Most recently, it rose slightly to 11.2 percent of the total agricultural area. It remains to be seen how quickly the logo will grow in width. The catering industry still saw open questions.
The extended indication of origin
In supermarkets and butchers, mandatory labeling of the country of origin is to be extended – namely also to unpackaged meat from pigs, sheep, goats and poultry. This already applies to packaged goods, as well as unpackaged beef. Özdemir wants to regulate this nationally, but continues to push for EU-wide requirements.
The country of rearing and slaughter must be indicated, with small signs on the goods or on screens. For example: “Raised in: France. Slaughtered in: Germany”, as the ministry explained. If birth, rearing and slaughter were in a single country, it can say “Origin: Germany”.
The Federal Council approved the ordinance, but reported an amendment: If a butcher’s shop only offers meat from one animal species from a single origin, a general note in the shop should be sufficient for information. For example, a clearly visible notice: “All of our pork in the counter comes from Germany.”
Federal Council approves change to ban on killing chicks
There will be a change to the ban on killing chicks in laying hen husbandry on January 1, 2024. On Friday, the Bundesrat approved a law passed by the Bundestag on this. Interventions to determine the sex in the egg and a possible termination of incubation are therefore only taboo from the 13th day of incubation – no longer from the 7th day as was the case under the previous legal situation. This takes into account a new state of research and creates legal certainty, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture explained in justification. (dpa)
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