Alleged regional foods are often produced hundreds of kilometers away

Regional products: where do they actually come from??
A majority of consumers value what is in food and where it comes from. Often the products should be in organic quality. In addition, they should come from the region. But when is commodity "regional"? A clear definition of this does not yet exist.

Environmental protection must not be neglected
It is important for many people to eat a healthy and balanced diet. The environmental protection must not be neglected. According to experts, it is also very easy to eat in an environmentally friendly way if some rules are respected. One of these is that the food should have been produced nearby, as it eliminates the need for long transport routes. But the term "regional" on food does not tell if the products actually come from the area.

According to experts, three quarters of consumers value regional products. Whether food really comes from the environment, is often not so easy to find out. (Image: Eisenhans / fotolia.com)

No one hundred percent guarantee
Consumers are often unsure how reliable food labels really are. Although one should think that an "eco" label indicates that the environment is being spared, "organic" is healthier and "regional" emphasizes that the products come from up close. But it is not that easy. Such labels do not necessarily give consumers a 100% guarantee.

Three-quarters of consumers value regional goods
According to the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, 76 percent of consumers attach importance to regional products, reports Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR). But what does regional mean?

A survey by the WDR consumer and guide magazine Servicezeit with consumers revealed that a maximum distance of 49 kilometers between the supermarket and the manufacturer may lie.

Employees of the magazine program then bought 17 groceries in three supermarkets and three discounters and published what they claim to be unrepresentative findings.

Discounters do not highlight regional products
Thus, only five of the food came from a radius of less than 49 kilometers, another four were under 100 kilometers way behind and the rest were partly significantly over it - including marshmallows from the United States.

According to WDR, supermarkets advertise far more with regional products than the competition of discounters. According to the information, Rewe makes the most transparent impression. Already in the entrance area the producers are mentioned with names and addresses. Edeka also highlights the regional products clearly. Discounters like Aldi, Lidl or Netto tend not to do this.

Hundreds of kilometers from the place of manufacture
As the WDR explains, while the term "regional" is widely advertised, there is no single definition that manufacturers and marketers have to adhere to. So consumers have to compare product by product where the food has been produced.

Wiesenhof poultry was one of two products that attracted very negative attention. This was advertised with the imprint of regional farms, though the net market was 310 kilometers away from the grower.

And Voelkel's "domestic multi" vitamin juice was sold 400 kilometers away from the production site.

Clear information for food
Only the label "Regional", commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, gives reliable information about which state and which place the food comes from. However, the spread of the label is not too big.

Consumer advocates have been calling for clear food claims for years. Above all, it is particularly important for many to clarify what is really behind the quality labels such as "Bio" and Co. (Ad)