The “Gansl season” has begun, which means, above all, lots of local visits. The range of restaurants, snack bars, taverns and coffee houses is huge: there are around 40,000 catering establishments in Austria, 6,000 of which are in Vienna. The Vienna Animal Welfare Ombudsman’s guide “Open your eyes when visiting a restaurant!” is intended to help potential guests make an animal welfare and environmentally conscious decision when choosing a restaurant and food. In addition to practical tips, the guide contains an overview of the most common gastro seals and their contribution to animal welfare.
In November, many restaurants offer menus with goose meat. Unfortunately, it is usually unclear under what conditions the geese that end up on the plates were raised. The keeping conditions differ significantly. While elsewhere the geese never see the sun and never have grass under their feet, geese in Austria – as well as organic geese regardless of their origin – have access to an outdoor run.
“Right now, around Martini and in the run-up to Christmas, people particularly enjoy visiting pubs. Since animal ingredients in private restaurants do not have to be labeled according to origin and husbandry, paying guests often do not know what is really being served to them,” explains Vienna’s animal protection ombudsman Eva Persy. The personal criteria that consumers pay attention to when purchasing food, such as animal welfare, origin, seasonality or organic, often have to be left at the door when eating away from home and therefore remain unconsidered.
“For the majority of people in our country – as surveys show again and again – the protection of agricultural animals, which should be kept under appropriate living conditions, is very important. You also want to make an informed decision when voting locally. Furthermore, restaurateurs should be supported in their efforts to increase animal protection,” explains Persy. “Especially during the goose season, I appeal to all Viennese people to make a conscious decision in favor of an organic goose or a vegan alternative. In this way, we can set an example for animal welfare and sustainability together – even at traditional banquets.”
Analysis of 17 gastro seals
The 32-page guide “Keep your eyes open when visiting locals!” now enables consumers who value animal welfare and sustainability to follow its principles when eating away from home. In the included Gastrosiegel overview, 17 symbols and programs from gastronomy and public catering are analyzed according to the specifications that they have specifically for animal and environmental protection. The handy brochure is online on the website of the Vienna Animal Protection Ombudsman and also available as a printed edition at the city information center in the town hall and the main library in Vienna.
OTS ORIGINAL TEXT PRESS RELEASE UNDER THE EXCLUSIVE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SENDER FOR CONTENT – WWW.OTS.AT | NRK