Foodstuffs Act (FSA)
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Section 1 Confederation
Art. 38 Import, export and transit
1 The Confederation shall enforce this Act in relation to import, export and transit. 2 It may in individual cases delegate specific enforcement duties and the authority to take the final decision to the canton concerned.
Art. 39 Restrictions on imports
1 The competent federal authority may may prohibit the import of certain unsafe products where the risk to the health of the population cannot otherwise be averted. 2 They may order that specific products may only be imported if the competent authority in the exporting country or an accredited agency certifies that the product complies with Swiss foodstuffs legislation.
Art. 40 Research
1 The Confederation shall procure and study the scientific information necessary for the application of this Act. 2 It may conduct studies itself or in collaboration with the cantons.
Art. 41 Enforcement in the armed forces
1 In fixed installations used by the armed forces, the Confederation shall if possible arrange for the cantonal enforcement authorities to carry out inspections of foodstuffs. 2 In addition, the armed forces shall themselves ensure that the requirements of this Act are met. 3 The Federal Council shall regulate responsibilities and the procedure.
Art. 42 Supervision and coordination
1 The Confederation shall supervise the enforcement of this Act by the cantons. 2 It shall coordinate enforcement measures and the provision of information and shall issue national inspection and emergency plans. 3 It may for the purpose of coordination: a. require the cantons to inform the Confederation of enforcement measures and of the results of inspections and tests; b. require the cantons to carry out specific measures with a view to harmonising enforcement; c. in extraordinary situations, instruct the cantons to carry out specific enforcement measures. 4 The competent federal authority may: a. coordinate and support inter-laboratory testing by the cantonal enforcement authorities; b. conduct its own inter-laboratory testing in cooperation with the cantonal enforcement authorities. 5 The Federal Council shall coordinate the enforcement of this Act with the enforcement of the following acts in particular: a. Animal Protection Act of 16 December 2005; b. Therapeutic Products Act of
Para. 5 let. a — SR 455 Para. 5 let. b — SR 812.21 Para. 5 let. c — SR 814.91 Para. 5 let. d — SR 818.101 Para. 5 let. e — SR 910.1 Para. 5 let. f — SR 916.40
Art. 43 National reference laboratories
1 The Confederation shall run national reference laboratories. 2 If the competent federal authority is unable to run reference laboratories itself, it shall delegate this task to third parties. If the threshold value in Article 6 paragraph 1 of the Federal Act of 16 December 1994 on Public Procurement is exceeded, it shall invite tenders for the contract. 3 The Federal Council shall determine the laboratories’ areas of responsibility and regulate their tasks. 4 The laboratories must: a. meet the international standards on the operation of testing laboratories and be accredited in their assigned field of activity; b. have sufficient staff, rooms, equipment and resources to be able to fulfil their tasks at all times; c. be able to provide suitable guarantees of their credibility, impartiality and independence vis-à-vis persons who manufacture, import or place on the market products that fall within the scope of responsibility of the laboratories concerned.
Para. 2 — [AS 1996 508; 1997 2465 Annex No 3; 2006 2197 Annex No 11; 2007 5635 Art. 25 para. 1; 2011 5659 Annex No 1, 6515 Art. 26 para. 1; 2012 3655 No I 2; 2015 773; 2017 7563 Annex No II 1; 2019 4101 Art. 1. AS 2020 641 Annex 7 No I]. See now: the FA of 21 June 2019 (SR 172.056.1).
Art. 44 Federal Council implementing provisions
1 The Federal Council shall issue the implementing provisions. In doing so, it shall take account of internationally harmonised regulations, guidelines, recommendations and standards and may declare such arrangements applicable. 2 It may delegate the enactment of administrative and technical regulations to the competent federal office.
Art. 45 International cooperation
1 The federal authorities shall work with specialised national and international offices and institutions and carry out the tasks required under international treaties. 2 International administrative assistance is governed by Article 22 of the Federal Act of 6 October 1995 on Technical Barriers to Trade. 3 The Federal Council may on its own initiative conclude international agreements on Switzerland’s participation in international systems to guarantee the safety of foodstuffs and consumer products. 4 It may recognise foreign inspection agencies, declarations and certificates of conformity and inspections, controls, conformity assessments or licencing procedures carried out abroad. Article 18 paragraph 2 of the Federal Act on Technical Barriers to Trade remains reserved.
Para. 2 — SR 946.51
Art. 46 Cross-border inspections
1 Foreign authorities that wish to inspect Swiss businesses that export foodstuffs or consumer products to their countries require the consent of the competent federal authority. The authority shall issue its consent if: a. the inspections have the sole purpose of verifying compliance with the regulations of the country concerned on manufacturing foodstuffs or consumer products and with the requirements relating to the condition of the foodstuffs or consumer products to be exported; and b. the business to be inspected agrees to the inspection. 2 The competent federal authority may require that it be allowed to attend the inspection or that it be notified of the results by the foreign authority that carries out the inspection. 3 The competent Swiss authorities may inspect businesses in the countries that export foodstuffs or consumer products to Switzerland provided: a. this is required to guarantee health protection; and b. provision is made for this in an international agreement or th
Section 2 Cantons
Art. 47 Principles
1 The cantons shall enforce this Act unless the Confederation is responsible. 2 They shall ensure that inspections of foodstuffs and consumer products are carried out in Switzerland.
Art. 48 Laboratories
1 The cantons shall operate specialised and accredited laboratories for the testing of samples. 2 They may merge laboratories in order to operate them together. 3 They may also delegate the testing of samples to accredited inspection agencies.
Art. 49 Enforcement agencies
1 The cantons shall appoint as enforcement officers: a. a cantonal chemist; b. a cantonal veterinarian; c. the required number of: 1. food inspectors, 2. food controllers, 3. official veterinarians, 4. official assistants. 2 They may delegate special inspection duties to other enforcement authorities. 3 The Federal Council may provide for additional cantonal enforcement officers.
Art. 50 Cantonal implementing provisions
1 The cantons shall enact implementing provisions on cantonal enforcement and regulate the duties and organisation of their enforcement officers in terms of this Act. 2 They shall notify the federal authorities of their implementing provisions.
Art. 51 Coordination, management and cooperation with the federal authorities
1 Each canton shall on its own territory coordinate the implementation of the legislation on foodstuffs and consumer products from manufacture to supply to the consumers. 2 The cantonal chemist shall enforce this Act in relation to foodstuffs and consumer products. In doing so, he or she shall be professionally independent. 3 The cantonal veterinarian shall enforce this Act in relation to the primary production of foodstuffs of animal origin and the slaughter of animals. The canton may also delegate him or her the task of inspecting the processing of slaughtered animals. The cantonal veterinarian shall be professional independent in carrying out these tasks. 4 The competent cantonal authorities shall provide the reports to the federal authorities required under this Act. 5 They shall participate in the supervisory activities carried out by the federal authorities or by international agencies.
Section 3 Enforcement Agency Employees
Art. 52 Requirements for the employees of enforcement agencies
1 The Federal Council shall determine the professional requirements for employees of the various enforcement agencies. 2 It shall determine the training programmes and the qualifications that employees of the enforcement agencies must have.
Art. 53 Training
1 The Confederation and cantons shall jointly ensure the training of the persons responsible for enforcing this Act. 2 The competent federal authority may appoint examination boards to organise examinations for employees of the enforcement agencies. 3 The Federal Council shall regulate organisation of the examinations. 4 It may delegate the organisation of examinations for food controllers to the cantons. 5 The competent Federal Office shall decide on the recognition of training programmes and examinations.
Section 4 Common Provisions on Enforcement by the
Art. 54 Public warnings
1 If the enforcement authorities establish that unsafe foodstuffs or consumer products have been supplied to an undetermined number of consumers, they shall ensure that the public are informed and advised on what action to take. 2 If the public in two or more cantons are placed at risk, the federal authorities shall provide information and recommendations. 3 In minor cases, the competent authority may make the information available online. 4 The authority consult, if possible beforehand: a. the person who manufactured or imported the product or placed it on the market; b. consumer organisations. 5 They may instruct the person responsible for placing the product on the market to provide information to the public.
Art. 55 Involvement of third parties
1 The competent authority may delegate tasks related to official inspections to third parties, in particular companies and organisations. They may create suitable organisations for this purpose. 2 In order to carry out their activities, third parties must be: a. accredited; b. recognised by Switzerland under an international agreement; or c. in some other way authorised or recognised under federal law. 3 The Federal Council shall regulate the standards for accreditation. 4 The authorities concerned shall define the tasks and powers that they assign to third parties. The third parties may not order any measures. 5 The Federal Council and the cantons may authorise third party contractors to charge fees for their activities under this Act. Their tariffs shall require the approval of the Federal Department of Home Affairs. 6 Cooperation by third parties shall be subject to state supervision. Third parties must report to the authorities that have delegated them duties or powers on the manag
Art. 56 Duty of confidentiality
Persons assigned tasks relating to the implementation of this Act are subject to a duty of confidentiality. Articles 24 and 60 are reserved.