Police crack down on illegal meat smuggling from France into Switzerland • FRANCE 24 English

Police crack down on illegal meat smuggling from France into Switzerland • FRANCE 24 English

[Music] The number plates in this car park show how close it lies to Switzerland. These residents of the canton of Geneva often cross the border to do their shopping in French supermarkets. It’s cheaper, so it makes sense. Among the most sought after products is meat. This is red label quality. It’s €24 for two packs. We have red label in Switzerland, but it’s twice the price. Chicken is half the price on this side of the border. Beef is up to three times cheaper. High production costs and rigorous quality standards make Swiss meat some of the most expensive in the world. To prevent unfair competition and protect the agricultural sector, Swiss citizens are limited to 1 kg of foreign meat per person per day. Above that, customs duties of up to 23 Swiss Franks or nearly 25 euros must be paid per kilo. Some try to avoid paying the fee. Part of it was declared, but when we searched the vehicle, we found some bags containing more meat. Whether to save money or for financial gain, these abuses are on the rise. According to the head of the customs anti-fraud unit, we’re making more and more seizures. Here we have 50 kilos that haven’t been declared which already represents a considerable amount of money. Usually we find lukewarm meats and the smell is quite pungent. A double challenge for public health as well as for the economy. Several million Swiss Franks are lacking from the state coffers each year. In 2024, more than 200 tons of contraband meat were seized by customs, double the amount in 2022. We’re dealing with ordinary people here who try and sometimes they succeed, sometimes not. And then you have the professionals who find other ways. They go to suppliers and hire people to cross the borders or cross themselves with the goods. They usually have a lookout who tells them it’s okay, you can pass. And after they get through, there’s a distribution network organized to deliver to butchers, kebab shops, and other restaurants. Meat smugglers operate in the same market as drug dealers. On social media, this cocaine dealer offers to fill the boot and back of his car with meat for €150. Another even offers a personalized service. Sometimes the trafficking is organized right at the slaughter house. Unscrupulous butchers and restaurant owners lie behind this lucrative business. Here in Gaia on the French side, just a few meters from the border. A former butchers employee says he’s witnessed the extent of the trafficking from the inside. He wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals. We see them meet mobsters. They take orders one by one. They put the meat in bins, which is not hygienic. There are almost 30 customers a day. Restaurant owners buy it because it’s cheaper. Butchers have it delivered. You can take anything you want from 1 kilo to 500 kilos. There’s no difference. Everyone fudges the invoices. It makes me sick to see what Switzerland is going through. I wonder how they can still bear it. Bernard Menu asked himself the same question. This butcher on the outskirts of Geneva has been warning about the situation for years. This is Swiss meat that is traced with barcodes. The producer has specifications that are regularly checked. So, the quality is excellent. In 20 years, the region has gone from roughly 100 butchers to around 20 today. This decline has been accelerated by the rise of supermarkets and illegal imports. We’ve realized that since people have been going to the other side, our turnover has fallen by 30 to 40%. These people don’t pay any taxes, they have no overhead, no social security contributions, it’s all net profit. So inevitably, they can sell their products at a much lower price than ours. Meat is much more expensive. Wages are much higher. Rents are horribly expensive. What Bernard Menu denounces are poorest borders like this one. sometimes barely visible. Every day, tens of thousands of vehicles cross from France into Switzerland. The Geneva region alone has around 100 crossing points. Before, when we found 10 kilos of meat in a car, it seemed a lot. Now, it’s standard. It’s painstaking work for these officers who are already busy with many other issues such as illegal immigration and drug trafficking. Customs officials say they’re doing their best with the resources they have. We’re going to see how many kilos there are. No traffickers arrested today, but a few customers were found not to have declared excess meat, like this couple who are well over the 2 kilo limit. Please come with me. 10.8 kilos and 13.4 kilos, that’s 24.2 kilos. There’s a 650 Frank fine to pay, plus 377 Franks to take the meat home. A bill running over €1,100, a drop in the ocean of illegal meat imports. Professional smugglers risk up to a year in prison. A dozen investigations are currently underway.

Illegal meat trafficking is on the rise, with quantities seized by customs becoming increasingly significant. From simple steak portions hidden under car bonnets to entire quarters of beef stacked on the back seats, the illegal import of meat from France to Switzerland has massively increased in recent years. The reason for this illicit trade: the price of meat, which is two to three times lower on the French side.
#meat #switzerland #France

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