Compelling reasons for choosing regional foods

Apples, potatoes, oat drinks, regional bakery products, sausages and cheese from the vicinity – purchasing regional foods is a trend. According to the BMEL’s 2022 nutrition report, 45 percent of German citizens consider the regional marketing of foods important or very important.

Advantages a great number of them see in foods from the vicinity include the following:

• Short transport routes and seasonal products can contribute to climate stewardship.
• Regional economic cycles strengthen the economic stability of local supply and the products offered are of high quality and often characterised by freshness and a rich taste.
• Regional marketing also allows producers to preserve or restore local processing structures such as small-scale dairy plants, slaughterhouses and flour and oil mills, thereby securing local jobs.
• Local demand helps to support the diversity of agricultural landscapes with pastures and orchard meadows.
• Well- and transparently-marketed regional products are suited to foster mutual trust between regional producers and consumers.

Self-sufficiency and seasonality in Germany

When purchasing food, consumers should be aware of the fact that the range of regional products available in Germany varies considerably depending on the product group. For instance, Germany’s degree of self-sufficiency ranges from 20 percent for fruit to 145 percent for potatoes, which means that 80 percent of fruit are imported from abroad while potatoes can be exported from Germany. Moreover, the available supplies of products differ between the regions, e.g. between the Lake Constance region with its abundance of local fruit and vegetables and the North and Baltic sea regions where cultivation conditions are determined by the maritime climate.

"Regionality" is not clearly defined

There is no clear definition of the terms “region” and “regional”. The understanding of how far a specific region extends may vary. As long as this does not imply consumer deception, producers can determine the scope and borders of a region themselves. Consumers must, however, be in a position to recognise what the regional designation stands for. The "Regionalfenster” regional label and the quality labels of the German federal states can provide reliable guidance in this regard as they indicate state-certified quality and provenance from the respective federal state. Across the EU, the "protected designation of origin" (PDO) and "protected geographical indication" (PGI) EU quality labels signify the special characteristics of a food that result from its production, processing, preparation or maturation taking place in a specific geographical area. Examples include the PDO “Allgäuer Emmentaler” (Emmental cheese from the Allgäu region) and the PGI “Lübecker Marzipan” (marzipan from the Hanseatic City of Lübeck).

The “Regionalfenster” regional label

The “Regionalfenster” regional label was initiated by the BMEL in cooperation with commercial operators and offers a clear, reliable and transparent labelling system for regional products: thanks to the blue window, consumers can see at a glance from the packaging whether and to what extent a particular product is “regional”.

The regional label gives producers from the region an opportunity to stand out from other initiatives and to provide customers with credible evidence of their product’s added value. This transparency generates the confidence required for regional marketing.

Consumers need to be sure that a producer is justified in advertising the regional origin of the product. To this end, clear criteria for an informative and reliable regional labelling system have been elaborated:

• The region has to be designated unequivocally and verifiably (e.g. district, federal state or specifics of a radius in kilometres); it may also go beyond state or federal state borders (e.g. “cereals from the Eifel region” or “100 kilometres around the city of Aachen”).
• The first main ingredient and the value-enhancing ingredients (e.g. strawberries in strawberry yoghurt) must originate completely from the region indicated and make up at least 51 percent of the product’s overall weight. If the main ingredient accounts for less than 51 percent, other ingredients must also each originate entirely from the region until at least 51 percent of the overall weight is reached.
• In the case of composite products, the total amount of all regional raw materials will be indicated as a percentage.
• The processing location must be identified on the regional label.
• In addition, data on the provenance of agricultural precursors/input products (e.g. animal feed, young animals, seeds) may be indicated on the regional label.

Controls

Unlike a great number of unspecific advertisements, the regional label immediately provides consumers with details on which region the raw materials originate from and where they were processed. Evidence must be given that the main ingredient originates from the region specified. A neutral and multistage control and safeguarding system ensures that the information on the region, the ingredients and the processing location are reliable.

Authorisation to use the label and market coverage

The “Regionalfenster” is a voluntary, private label initiated by the BMEL. It is supported by the “Regionalfenster e.V.” association and the “Regionalfenster Service GmbH” company. The “Regionalfenster e.V.” association represents the entire value-added chain: it includes the food retail sector as well as representatives from regional initiatives, the food trade and agriculture.

Since January 2019, the "Regionalfenster Service GmbH" company has been in charge of the operational activities. It took over this task from the association due to the positive market development of the regional label. "Regionalfenster Service GmbH" organises the verification of all criteria and issues agri-food companies with licences to use the regional label. It is also the owner of the label, which has been registered as a trademark.

Products bearing the regional label have been on the market since early January 2014. Before a product is allowed to bear the regional label, it must have undergone testing in accordance with the high standards of the regional label’s review and safeguarding system. Consumers may rest assured that the information provided by the regional label is correct and that the product actually comes from the region indicated.

The “Regionalfenster” regional label system has proven effective to date:

• In surveys conducted as part of a research and evaluation project as early as 2013, consumers and traders were very positive in their assessment of the regional label.
• According to a consumer poll conducted by the Thünen Institute in 2018, a great majority (80 percent) believe that the regional label is reliable.
• Sixty-four percent of consumers pay attention to the regional label when shopping. This was the result of a representative survey of around 1,000 German citizens commissioned by the BMEL in 2022 for the 2022 BMEL Nutrition Report.
• By August 2022, contracts had been concluded with approximately 890 licensees and more than 5,500 products had been permitted to use the regional label – and the figure continues to rise.

For further information on the “Regionalfenster e. V.” association, the “Regionalfenster Service GmbH” and the regional label, please go to www.regionalfenster.de (available in German only).

The German federal states’ regional quality labels

Many German federal states have developed regional quality labels that indicate the particular quality of raw and processed products originating from the respective federal state. The quality requirements for these products are stricter than the standards prescribed by law, e.g. in terms of feeding requirements in livestock husbandry. These government-approved quality labels for foods can, as a rule, be recognised by the wording “geprüfte Qualität” (quality tested) or “gesicherte Qualität” (quality assured), accompanied by the designation of the relevant federal state.

Released 05. Jan 2023 as article