Buy european (and boycott USA) - Swiss edition ๐จ๐ญ
Hi! I've been following the #buyeuropean movement since about a year and amidst current political events I felt the need to deepen my engagement. All existing lists and guides have been a great resource but I still felt like they didn't have an impact big enough on my consumer habits. This is why I did some research on everyday products in my local supermarkets for us people in Switzerland.
The following lists have been created with the goal to endorse products and alternatives that are as local as possible and belong to companies that are somewhat established but without a horrendous reputation. This is why Nestlรฉ is in the avoid section but if you don't care much about that you can see them as alternatives instead.
Keep in mind that this is a list written by me, a single person, so it's likely to be influenced by my consumer habits, my lifestyle, my location etc. If anyone has more recommendations or finds something was ill-researched, you're most welcome to contribute. I might edit this list later on myself.
To the list:
- The company in Brackets is the manufacturer or - if owned externally - the parent company of the manufacturer. For research I've been looking up predominantly Wikipedia or the brands official page.
- To almost every product there are store brand alternatives like M-Classic and M-Budget (Migros), naturaplan, fine food, Karma and Prix Garantie (Coop) and others (Denner, Lidl, Aldi, etc.) which I didn't bother to list everywhere. But those are good alternatives most of the time, so don't forget about them!
Edit: I just noticed on some Lemmy clients the <br> doesn't work. Sorry about that. You can view the correctly formatted post here (blorpblorp).
Food
Dairy
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Fresh Cheese | Philadelphia (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ) | Filona (Zรผger Frischkรคse ๐จ๐ญ)Cantadou (Bel Group ๐ซ๐ท)Tartare (Savencia ๐ซ๐ท) |
| Yoghurt | Hirz (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)LC1 (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | Emmi ๐จ๐ญActivia (Danone ๐ซ๐ท) |
Frozen section
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Frozen Snacks | Buitoni (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | Dr. Oetker ๐ฉ๐ชFindus (Nomad Foods ๐ฌ๐ง)Kern & Sammet ๐จ๐ญ |
| Ice Cream | Extrรชme (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Frisco (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Hรคagen-Dazs (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Mรถvenpick (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Maxibon / Rakete / Pralinato (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)(Ben&Jerry's ๐บ๐ธ (Unilever ๐ฌ๐ง)) | Creme d'Or (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Gasparini ๐จ๐ญKalte Lust ๐จ๐ญEmmi ๐จ๐ญ |
Grains
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Mexican inspired | Old El Paso (General Mills ๐บ๐ธ)Pancho Villa (General Mills ๐บ๐ธ) | Store brandsFiesta del Sol (Migros ๐จ๐ญ) |
| Rice | Ben's Original (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ) | Store brandsTom's Best (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Mister Rice (Migros ๐จ๐ญ) |
Sauces
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Sauces | Heinz ๐บ๐ธThomy (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Maggi (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | Store brandsHugo ๐จ๐ญ |
Breakfast
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Cereals | Kelloggs (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Cini Minis / Lion Cereals / Cookie Crisp (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | Familia ๐จ๐ญFarmer (Migros๐จ๐ญ)Country (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Alnatura ๐ฉ๐ช |
| Chocolate Spreads | De Rujiter (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ) | Lindt ๐จ๐ญOvomaltine ๐จ๐ญ (Associated British Foods ๐ฌ๐ง)Caotina ๐จ๐ญ (Associated British Foods ๐ฌ๐ง)Nutella (Ferrero ๐ฎ๐น)Nocciolata (Rigoni di Asiago ๐ฎ๐น) |
Snacks
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Salty snacks | Pringles (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Doritos (PepsiCo ๐บ๐ธ)Pancho Villa (General Mills ๐บ๐ธ)TUC (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ)Lay's (Pepsico ๐บ๐ธ) | Zweifel ๐จ๐ญFarm Chips ๐จ๐ญ (Migros)Tyrrells ๐ฌ๐ง |
| Chocolate | Toblerone (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ)Cailler (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Smarties (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Kitkat (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)M&Ms (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Malteser (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Twix / Snickers / Mars / Milky Ways / Bounty (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Reese's (Hershey ๐บ๐ธ)Balisto (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Mikado (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ)Milka (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ) | Lindt ๐จ๐ญRagusa (Camille Bloch๐จ๐ญ)Torino (Camille Bloch๐จ๐ญ)Frey (Migros๐จ๐ญ)Kรคgi ๐จ๐ญHalba ๐จ๐ญOvomaltine ๐จ๐ญ (Associated British Foods ๐ฌ๐ง)Kinder (Ferrero ๐ฎ๐น)Toffifee (August Storck ๐ฉ๐ช)Knoppers (August Storck ๐ฉ๐ช) |
| Cookies | Oreo (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ) | Kambly ๐จ๐ญWernli ๐จ๐ญ |
| Sweets | Sugus (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Skittles (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ) | Trolli ๐ฉ๐ชHaribo ๐ฉ๐ชNimm 2 (August Storck ๐ฉ๐ช) |
| Chewing gum / Mints | Hubba Bubba (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Airwaves (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ) | Ricola ๐จ๐ญStimorol (Perfetti van Melle ๐ฎ๐น๐ณ๐ฑ)Mentos (Perfetti van Melle ๐ฎ๐น๐ณ๐ฑ)Fisherman's Friend ๐ฌ๐งTictac (Ferrero ๐ฎ๐น) |
Beverages
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Alcohol | Jack Daniels ๐บ๐ธJim Beam Bourbon ๐บ๐ธWoodford Reserve ๐บ๐ธBudweiser ๐บ๐ธ | I don't drink much alcohol, suggestions welcomeJohnny Walker ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ณ๓ ฃ๓ ด๓ ฟ (Diageo ๐ฌ๐ง) |
| Soft Drinks | Pepsi (PepsiCo ๐บ๐ธ)Gatorade (PepsiCo ๐บ๐ธ)7-up (PepsiCo ๐บ๐ธ)Dr Pepper (PepsiCo ๐บ๐ธ)Capri-Sun (Mondelez ๐บ๐ธ)Oasis (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)Coca-Cola / Fanta / Sprite (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)Fuzetea/Fusetea (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)Mezzo-Mix (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)Powerade (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)Schweppes (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)Monster Energy ๐บ๐ธArizona ๐บ๐ธNestea (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | Ramseier ๐จ๐ญSinalco ๐ฉ๐ชRivella ๐จ๐ญElmer ๐จ๐ญEl Tony Mate (intelligentfood ๐จ๐ญ)Migros Ice Tea (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Focus Water (Rivella ๐จ๐ญ)Sirup (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Pepita (Mineralquelle Eptingen ๐จ๐ญ)Flauder (Goba ๐จ๐ญ)Farmer (Adelbodner ๐จ๐ญ)Red Bull ๐ฆ๐นVolvic (Danone ๐ซ๐ท)Vitamin Well ๐ธ๐ชIsostar (Associated British Foods ๐ฌ๐ง) |
| Water | Valser (Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ)S. Pellegrino (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Henniez (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Vittel (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | tap-water duhKnutwiler ๐จ๐ญRhรคzรผnser (Feldschlรถsschen ๐จ๐ญ)Adelbodner ๐จ๐ญAproz (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Swiss Alpina (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Evian (Danone ๐ซ๐ท) |
| Coffee | Nescafรฉ (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Nespresso (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Starbucks ๐บ๐ธ | Hochstrasser ๐จ๐ญBertschi ๐จ๐ญHenauer ๐จ๐ญVicafe ๐จ๐ญChicco D'Oro ๐จ๐ญCoffeeB ๐จ๐ญDelizio ๐จ๐ญLavazza ๐ฎ๐นL'Or (Jacobs Douwe Egberts ๐ณ๐ฑ)Tchibo ๐ฉ๐ช |
| Fruit Juice | Innocent (>90% Coca-Cola Co. ๐บ๐ธ) | Sun Queen (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Biotta (Orior ๐จ๐ญ)Anna's Best (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Sluups (Fresh Drink ๐จ๐ญ)Andros ๐ซ๐ทGranini (Eckes-Granini ๐ฉ๐ช)Alnatura ๐ฉ๐ชTrue Fruits ๐ฉ๐ชHohes C (Eckes-Granini ๐ฉ๐ช) |
Non-food
Household
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Laundry detergents | Ariel (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Lenor (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Febreze (P&G ๐บ๐ธ) | Held ๐จ๐ญTotal (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Elan (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Washo ๐จ๐ญPersil / Perwoll (Henkel ๐ฉ๐ช)Frosch (Werne & Mertz ๐ฉ๐ช)Omo (Unilever ๐ฌ๐ง)Vanish (Reckitt Benckiser ๐ฌ๐ง) |
| Cleaning utensils | Swiffer (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Scotch-Brite (3M ๐บ๐ธ)Scrub Daddy ๐บ๐ธ | Creaclean ๐จ๐ญTwist (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Flup (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Leifheit ๐ฉ๐ชVileda (Freudenberg ๐ฉ๐ช) |
| Cleaning | Ajax (Colgate-Palmolive ๐บ๐ธ) | Durgol ๐จ๐ญPotz (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Cif (Unilever ๐ฌ๐ง)Cillit Bang (Reckitt Benckiser ๐ฌ๐ง)Attitude ๐จ๐ฆDettol (Reckitt Benckiser ๐ฌ๐ง)Frosch (Werne & Mertz ๐ฉ๐ช) |
| Soap | Palmolive (Colgate-Palmolive ๐บ๐ธ)Le Petit Marseillais (Kenvue ๐บ๐ธ) | Method (Held ๐จ๐ญ)I am (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)pH-Balance (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Well (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Nivea (Beiersdorf ๐ฉ๐ช)Dettol (Reckitt Benckiser ๐ฌ๐ง) |
Drugstore
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Dental hygiene | Colgate (Colgate-Palmolive ๐บ๐ธ)Elmex (Colgate-Palmolive ๐บ๐ธ)Oral-B (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Listerine (Kenvue ๐บ๐ธ)Meridol (Colgate-Palmolive ๐บ๐ธ) | Curaprox ๐จ๐ญDentamed (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Candida (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Trisa ๐จ๐ญOdol (Haleon ๐ฌ๐ง)Parodontax (Haleon ๐ฌ๐ง)Sensodyne (Haleon ๐ฌ๐ง)Philips ๐ณ๐ฑSignal (Unilever ๐ฌ๐ง) |
| Shaving | Gillette (P&G ๐บ๐ธ) | Wilkinson Sword ๐ฌ๐งWell (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Bic ๐ฌ๐ง |
| Intimate hygiene | Always (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Tampax (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Carefree (Johnson & Johnson ๐บ๐ธ) | Molfina (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)o.b. ๐ฉ๐ชCosmea (Pelz Group ๐ฉ๐ช)Duchesse (Mรผller ๐ฉ๐ช)Tena (Essity ๐ธ๐ช) |
| Haircare | Head & Shoulders (P&G ๐บ๐ธ)Pantene (P&G ๐บ๐ธ) | Belherbal (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Well (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Rausch ๐จ๐ญGarnier (L'Orรฉal ๐ซ๐ท)Elsรจve (L'Orรฉal ๐ซ๐ท)Schwarzkopf (Henkel ๐ฉ๐ช)Syoss (Henkel ๐ฉ๐ช) |
| Skincare | Neutrogena (Kenvue ๐บ๐ธ)Le Petit Marseillais (Kenvue ๐บ๐ธ) | Weleda ๐จ๐ญpH-Balance (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Kneipp ๐จ๐ญNivea (Beiersdorf ๐ฉ๐ช)Eucerin (Beiersdorf ๐ฉ๐ช)CeraVe (L'Orรฉal ๐ซ๐ท)La Roche Posay (L'Orรฉal ๐ซ๐ท) |
| Tissues | Kleenex (Kimberly-Clark ๐บ๐ธ) | Linsoft (Migros ๐จ๐ญ)Well (Coop ๐จ๐ญ)Tempo (Essity ๐ธ๐ช) |
| Lip balms | Burts Bees (Clorox ๐บ๐ธ) | Labello (Beiersdorf ๐ฉ๐ช)Vaseline (Unilever ๐ฌ๐ง) |
| Makeup | NYX ๐บ๐ธ (L'Orรฉal ๐ซ๐ท)Maybelline ๐บ๐ธ (L'Orรฉal ๐ซ๐ท) | L'Orรฉal Paris ๐ซ๐ท |
Pets
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Pet food | Whiskas (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Sheba (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Cesar (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Dreamies (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Pedigree (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Exelcat (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Perfect Fit (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ)Edgar-Cooper (General Mills ๐บ๐ธ)Purina (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ)Friskies (Nestlรฉ ๐จ๐ญ) | Delibest (Delipet ๐จ๐ญ)Vitakraft ๐จ๐ญLily's Kitchen ๐ฌ๐ง |
| Other stuff | Catsan (Mars Inc. ๐บ๐ธ) | Optipet (Martec Handels ๐จ๐ญ) |
Some extras
There is still so much left to look into - clothing, outdoor, kitchen ware, cars, traveling, etc. - but because my time is limited and this post is already getting pretty long here are just a few more addings I felt strongly about.
| Category | To avoid | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Payment | Visa ๐บ๐ธMastercard ๐บ๐ธAmerican Express ๐บ๐ธ | Twint ๐จ๐ญ (wherever possible)Auf Rechnung |
| Second hand buying / selling | Facebook Marketplace (Meta ๐บ๐ธ) | Ricardo ๐จ๐ญTutti ๐จ๐ญMarko ๐จ๐ญ |
| Streaming | Netflix ๐บ๐ธAmazon Prime ๐บ๐ธDisney Plus ๐บ๐ธetc. | playsuisse.ch ๐จ๐ญSRF ๐จ๐ญfilmfriend.ch ๐จ๐ญcinu.ch ๐จ๐ญArte.tv ๐ซ๐ท๐ฉ๐ชYour local cinemaYour local libraryThe high seas ๐ดโโ ๏ธ |
If you got this far thank you for scrolling through and I hope this helped someone in their endeavour. My eyes have certainly been opened regarding some brands I never questioned or believed to be very Swiss.
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Comments22
Just noticed your edit before I wanted to mention about the line breaks, but wanted to say thanks for the cool and informative table!
Thank you! Do you know of another way to do line breaks in a table?
Two empty spaces (or more) at the end of the line is the usual way in markdown, but not whether it works in every lemmy app since they all have different levels of markdown implementation but it should work.Edit: damnit sorry forgot about the table part.... No idea sorry :(
Edit 2: so I got curious and tried everything I could think of, and checked out what lemmy default web UI uses as it's markdown flavour: "commonmark", which doesn't natively seem to support newlines in tables sadly.
Double
space at the end of a line will give you a line break, but not sure if that works in a table.
Infomaniak - if youโre reading this please work on your pricing transparency and donโt hide prices behind trial accounts.
Itโs incredibly hard to migrate to a swiss provider from a US provider if you cannot even see what youโll be paying in the end.
Your website is atrocious in that regard.
I'm an Infomaniak user and while I'm really happy with the services they provide and will gladly vouch for them, you're right about their website. Sometimes it feels so jumbled and weirdly organised and some texts in their support documentation feel like they've been written by a bad AI.
Thanks! A quick look through the list was so helpful to make sure I am doing things right. I'm really surprised by Le Petit Marseillais and will not buy again. And so many snacks! I believe following the non-american diet might make me healthier as well.
Le Petit Marseillais got me too!
Great job, nice work - agree that store brand alternative is the easy alternative. But despite Ben & Jerry's is a US brand and they've become less outspoken since they are part of Unilever, i personally wouldn't put them on a list next to the likes of Nestlรฉ, 3M and Amazon.
Awesome list!
I was surprised not see Vinted or Sellpy on the second-hand list, but apparently neither works in Switzerland :O
You might be doing this already, but getting off Google Search is an essay thing that hurts the company a lot. And using adblock on YouTube.
PS: I'm shocked by Neutrogena. They got me with the Norwegian flag (WTF?!), I didn't even check it.
Yeah it seems like the flag is just there because of the Norwegian formula used. Very misleading
I didn't even consider other second-hand services since the ones I listed are already quite established here. Might make sense for people closer to the border to have an international platform though.
And yes, I got off Google Search a long ago and am happily using Ecosia :D
we need a TRUE free ios/android app that is maintained and up to date with scan functions not a huge list to go through when shopping
Johnny Walker is a great whiskey from Scotland
Thank you I put it into the list :)
It's though a quite different flavour from the sweetnees of a Bourbon. If Bourbon's your thing I'd recommend a Canadian Club. And yes, it's not European but unfortunately whiskies are quite dependent on climate and environment for their flavour profile.
Otherwise this is a great time to discover great Scotch wishkies!
The company behind L'or (JDE peet's) is being bought by Keurig Dr Pepper.
Absolutely wonderful, thank you so much for this! You may also notice after switching foodstuffs that you feel healthier, and that is not a coincidence.
Blorp dev here. You can also view viaย feddit.ukโs deployment of Blorp if you donโt want to worry about selecting an instance that federates with feddit.uk.
https://b.feddit.uk/home/c/[email protected]/posts/https%3A%2F%2Ffeddit.org%2Fpost%2F24577648
You may also consider Go European where you can find European alternative for a wide range products.
amazing