Response to interpellation 2022/23:49 on the labeling of meat in restaurants
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
The debate concerned mandatory origin labeling of meat in restaurants. KD argues that it is important for consumers to know where the meat comes from, but that they have chosen to wait for common EU legislation instead of national rules to avoid unnecessary bureaucracy and costs for restaurants 1 2. KD intends to work towards having origin labeling included in the revised EU regulation 1. S wants to see more Swedish on the plate and argues that eight out of ten consumers want origin labeling 3. S emphasizes that it is important for the profitability of primary production and for protecting Swedish meat production 3 4.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)
Madam Speaker! [Member Name] has asked me about and, if so, what the EU Commission has answered regarding Sweden's notification of national regulations concerning country-of-origin labeling for meat in restaurants, and if an answer has been received, whether it has prompted any action on my part. Furthermore, Anna-Caren Sätherberg has asked me if I intend to take any measures so that meat in restaurants, cafes, and large-scale kitchens shall be country-of-origin labeled.
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council, the so-called Food Information Regulation, specifies the general rules regarding the labeling of food within the Union. These rules are supplemented by provisions on information regarding country of origin in other regulatory frameworks. Today, it is mandatory within the EU to state the country of origin for certain packaged foods, such as beef, pork, poultry, sheep and goats, fish, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, mushrooms, wine, olive oil, honey and eggs. There are no requirements for mandatory country of origin labeling on food provided in restaurants or in large-scale kitchens. However, there is nothing preventing a restaurant or a large kitchen from informing the consumer about where the meat comes from, nor is there anything preventing a consumer from asking that question.
To adopt national provisions on additional country-of-origin labeling, a notification to the EU Commission and the Member States is required. The previous government notified the EU Commission and the Member States on 2 September 2022, that is this year, that Sweden planned to introduce national provisions on mandatory country-of-origin information for meat in restaurants and in large households. The notification was made in accordance with the notification procedure in Article 45 of the Food Information Regulation.
The European Commission announced on 6 October that the national provisions referred to in the notification concerned measures for non-prepackaged meat according to Article 44 of the Food Information Regulation. No formal notification is required for such measures.
The European Commission has, in its Farm to Fork strategy, announced that it intends to review the possibility of expanding the provisions on mandatory origin labeling. The Commission is currently working intensively on its proposal for a revision of the Food Information to Consumers Regulation. According to the latest information, a proposal is to be presented as early as the beginning of next year.
Based on the information from the EU Commission, there are no formal obstacles for Sweden to adopt new regulations itself, but since the work to revise the Food Information Regulation is being prepared, there are reasons to wait for the EU-wide legislation instead of introducing national regulations. The government therefore sent a communication to the EU Commission on November 16 with a notification that Sweden wishes to withdraw the aforementioned notification.
I believe, just as Anna-Caren Sätherberg, that it should also be mandatory to inform where the meat served in restaurants comes from. The Government therefore intends, in the upcoming negotiations on the food information regulation, to work towards ensuring that provisions on origin labeling of meat in restaurants are included in the revised legislation.
Anna-Caren Sätherberg (S)
Madam Speaker! I thank the Minister for Rural Affairs for the answer.
Under the Social Democratic government, many measures were taken to increase the sustainability and profitability of the food chain. For the first time, Sweden developed a food strategy from farm to export. We also saw exports increase significantly. Major support was provided to agriculture when there were crises that were difficult for agriculture to influence, such as the drought and Russia's actions with the horrific and illegal invasion of Ukraine. At that time, the Social Democratic government, together with the Center Party, put forward over 3 billion in support for Swedish agriculture.
Alongside the food strategy and large-scale crisis support, we also introduced biogas support, support for solar cells, and so on. It is, of course, a very smart policy. At the same time as we ensure that we meet the climate crisis the world finds itself in, we increase the profitability in primary production. It creates more green jobs in Sweden's rural areas. Many of the farms I have visited have solar cells adorning their barn roofs or where the manure is actually used for biogas, which is also very positive. Some facilities are smaller, others larger. Municipalities also step in and buy biogas to fill the municipality's buses with and use in public transport.
This is good. As I said in the previous debate, I want to see more Swedish in the thinking. I also want to see more Swedish on the plate. There, I and the Minister for Rural Affairs have the same opinion, I was told. I want it because we have very good animal welfare and a low antibiotic use. During the pandemic, when many restaurants had a tough time and received fewer guests, it could be seen that people who shopped in stores where there is origin labeling chose Swedish. Eight out of ten consumers want to see an origin labeling of meat in restaurants, according to the National Food Agency.
It is quite true that the Social Democratic government made a notification to the EU Commission regarding national regulations concerning origin information on meat in restaurants. The Minister for Rural Affairs says in his interpellation response that such a notification was not needed. I trust the Minister for Rural Affairs completely, but this surprises me, because it was pointed out by both authorities and the department itself, which Peter Kullgren now is responsible for, that a notification was needed to manage this. Otherwise, we would naturally have ensured that origin labeling of meat had already existed in restaurants, cafes, and large kitchens. Many parties in the Swedish Riksdag want this, as do LRF, many restaurateurs, and eight out of ten consumers.
My first two questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs will be: If the European Commission announces that a proposal will be coming at the beginning of next year, how long does the Minister for Rural Affairs estimate it could take in the EU process? Does the Minister for Rural Affairs have any idea how other countries stand on this, so that it can be pushed through quickly?
Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)
Madam Speaker! I thank you for the follow-up questions. As said, I believe we are in agreement on this and that it is more about the form of how it should be done.
One of the reasons why a proposal to introduce it is not being presented now is that it could potentially become very bureaucratic, complicated and expensive for our restaurant kitchen companies, large kitchen companies, cafes and so on if we establish a regulatory framework in a certain way.
When I met the commissioner responsible for the issues a few weeks ago, it was raised that the ambition, according to a tentative timetable, is that we should be able to present the proposal in March. Then it will need to be discussed and finalized.
Even though it takes a few months, I believe it is better for the industry than for us to now, at a national level, intervene with our way of making the regulations, perhaps be overridden and need to do it all over again in a few months. It is to reduce as much administrative hassle and costs for the companies as possible.
The message from the Commission is that they envision submitting a proposal by March at the latest. It should be there during the first quarter of next year. It is difficult to say anything about exactly when it will be decided. The interest is quite large from those I have met so far. But I cannot give a one hundred percent picture of how all other EU countries stand.
I hope that it will become a good regulatory framework. If it is not good enough by Swedish standards, we will have to see what we can do for supplementary regulations in Sweden and what opportunities the EU's regulatory framework gives us to do just that.
Anna-Caren Sätherberg (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister for Rural Affairs, for the answer! The only question is the time aspect. I want to ask the Minister for Rural Affairs what initiatives he intends to take so that the time aspect will decrease.
The Minister for Rural Affairs told me just before that he had had eleven or twelve bilaterals at his last meeting. It would be interesting to know if he also raised the issue of country of origin labeling in those bilaterals with other countries so that we ensure it gets on the table quickly.
That this shall be introduced is, as I said, something that has been requested by many political parties in the Riksdag, for example the Kristdemokraterna. It has been requested by producers of meat. It is they who ensure that we have the fantastic Swedish meat with low antibiotic use and good animal husbandry. That it shall happen is something that is requested by the consumers.
Many restaurants also want to introduce it. I received several messages from Sveriges Restauranger. They saw it as a matter of course that one should be able to report where the meat comes from. It is a consumer information that many want to provide.
The proposal was also not that it should be entirely too bureaucratic. It does not need to be in writing on a menu. It could be oral, at a board or something else, but still so that it is clear and distinct.
I heard the Minister for Rural Affairs say in his answer that one can indeed ask. But we know that once you have sat down at a restaurant, and perhaps ordered something to drink before the meal, and then realize that you are going to ask where the meat is from, it is already late. A consumer information must be clear at the beginning.
Actually, I have only one follow-up question, as we still cannot see the time aspect. What initiatives does the Minister for Rural Affairs intend to take to ensure that we can get the long-awaited origin labeling on restaurants as soon as possible?
Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)
Madam Speaker! It has been a point that has been present at all bilateral meetings. It is also a point that will be handled during the Swedish presidency. It is something that one needs to look into and flag up. It is something that we intend to achieve during our presidency.
That point has been highlighted in all the conversations I have had both with the commissioner and with other agriculture ministers from other countries. It has been discussed. One knows that something is in the works and that it is something that is on the table during our presidency.
It is not optimal that one needs to ask where the meat comes from when one is at a restaurant, absolutely not. That is why, just like you, I think we should have a different order of things.
I also know that for very many Swedes who go to restaurants, it is important to know where the meat comes from. So that sentence shall be interpreted that way. Much can be achieved with consumer power.
Don't be afraid to ask! Make sure to ensure what it is! I do it myself often. The point is that one asks: Where does your meat come from? Then one can choose based on the different answers received. This should be seen as a solution until we have the regulatory framework in place so that one, as a consumer, should still feel that one can make active and conscious choices.
I would also like to say that it feels good. I believe that Sweden's farmers and not least Sweden's meat producers will feel reassured if they have listened to this discussion. Both from the government and from the Social Democrats, we seem to agree on safeguarding Swedish meat production. That production is good and climate-smart and has a low antibiotic use. It is a good food product that we shall safeguard and prioritize.
It feels good that I think I hear a different tone than just a couple of years ago in the rhetoric. I believe it is good for Sweden's countryside and Sweden's farmers if we can keep our Swedish food production upright and keep it high and also show the rest of the world how skilled we are at food production in Sweden.
Anna-Caren Sätherberg (S)
Madam Speaker! I cannot answer what Peter Kullgren attributes to the rhetoric. I myself have, for the most part, worked in the restaurant industry my entire life. I can truly describe both what products contain and what one can recommend to eat. But it is not everyone who has done that.
That rhetoric has not changed at all. I am very proud of the Swedish products. I can see an enormous development of Swedish food production for many years to come. I actually believe it started with Tore Wretman taking on the Swedish home cooking once upon a time. I also had the privilege of working at one of his restaurants.
There is no difference in the rhetoric here. We need to ensure that the whole country lives and also ensure that profitability increases in different ways. As I said, during the pandemic we could see that when several restaurants were closed and people chose to buy their food in the store, they chose Swedish.
It is a development that a rural resident would like to see. Then we know that there will be profitability in the green industries. We also know how the meat is produced, what kind of breeding it is, what kind of animal husbandry it is, what low antibiotic use it is, and what qualities we get with Swedish on the plate.
Thank you, Minister for Rural Affairs! If I think that it will take far too long, I will return with an interpellation on the issue of origin labeling of meat in restaurants.
Landsbygdsministern Peter Kullgren (KD)
Madam Speaker! This discussion has shown that we agree on origin information for meat even in restaurants. It is an important issue for our consumers so that they can make the choices they want to make when they choose to eat at a restaurant, but also for the Swedish farmers.
Thank you very much, Anna-Caren Sätherberg, for giving me the opportunity to clarify that I think it is an important proposal and an important issue. I protect the restaurants and do not think we should have unnecessary bureaucracy and complications. That is why we took back the notification so that we will get rules that are long-term sustainable in the future and are not changed in a few months by an EU decision.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.