The packaging industry in Switzerland is suffering because of foreign competition, pricing pressures and a margin-erosion. SVI, the trade association for the Swiss packaging industry, has made the recommendation to choose Swiss products as an antidote for the crisis. Notably, Migros and Coop are trying to find a way around this, says the trade association.
"The large retailers have been putting their producers under pressure so that their prices can compete with foreign competitors," says Philippe Dubois, chairman of the SVI. The Euro is so cheap at the moment that many sectors are tempted to buy abroad. The fact that Migros and Coop are also in the same line of thinking is something that Dubois finds to be a problem. In the end, the commercial chains are calling for the Swiss themselves to buy domestic. Those who do deliberately buy a Swiss product, sometimes end up buying foreign produced packaging.
"For the Coop, however, the Swiss suppliers play an important role in pressuring the market to lower prices," writes the retailer to the news agency SDA. "For Coop, beneficial consumer prices are a focal point."
2011 was full of set-backs for the Swiss packaging industry: the branch achieved a surplus of 7.5 percent in 2010. In 2011, revenue stagnated at 6.72 billion Swiss franc. The margins have become smaller and the earnings decreased, hinted those responsible at the SVI.