**2. Legislation of the radioactivity controls in Switzerland**

In Switzerland, the radioactivity survey is a task of the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG), an office of the Federal Department of Home Affairs. One aspect is the monitoring of food, which is done in collaboration with the state laboratories of the cantons. In 1991, the Federal Assembly of the Swiss Confederation enforced the *Radiological Protection Act* [3] along with several Ordinances (e.g., the *Radiological Protection Ordinance*) [4]. The assessment of food is regulated in the *Ordinance on Contaminants and Constituents in Food* from 1994 (**Table 1**) [5]. This ordinance regulates the most important groups of radionuclides in a special way. For artificial radionuclides, two limits are set. The "tolerance values" should not be exceeded when food is grown or produced with good manufacturing practise. When values are over the tolerance limit, the food is considered as "reduced in its value". "Limit values" are of toxico‐ logical concern. When they are exceeded, the consumption of this food may lead to a dose of more than 1 mSv/year.

In emergency situations, when radioactive contamination may occur, special limit values are formulated. After the accident of Chernobyl, such special conditions were formulated for imports from East European countries [6]. Each importation of wild grown mushrooms has to be documented by an importation certificate, which documents a radiocaesium level below 600 Bq/kg. In 2011, the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office enforced precautions for the importation of Japanese food and feed origin from animals. Importations from specific prefectures have to be accompanied by a certificate of a radiocaesium analysis of the food [6, 7]. The Federal Office of Public Health will implement revised ordinances for Japan and Chernobyl in the next few years. Even, the Government intends to annul most of the limit values for radionuclides in times of non-crisis but to implement special limit values for crises.


Except for Brazil nuts (no limits).

initiated a countrywide monitoring programme. In 1969, the first nuclear power plant (NPP) of Beznau came on line to produce electric power. Today, five NPPs are producing about 38% of the electric powerin Switzerland. In addition to the emission controls of the NPPs and other radiation-producing facilities, the monitoring of radioactive fallout from the atmospheric, nuclear bomb tests is of special concern. Over 600 bomb tests in the atmosphere led to a contamination of the Northern Hemisphere with long-lived radionuclides, such as radiocae‐ sium, radiostrontium, and plutonium. The contamination situation was then aggravated by the reactor fire of the NPP of Chernobyl in late April of 1986. In Switzerland, the southern and eastern parts were more affected (in southern Switzerland, it rained on 3–5 May over 350 mm precipitation). On 5 May, the National Emergency Operations Centre (NAZ) started a monitoring programme for food with the help of the specialised laboratories in Dübendorf, Freiburg, Lausanne, Spiez, Würenlingen, and the State Laboratory Basel-City. In October 1986, a symposium on the measurements and their interpretation was held in Berne [2]. In 1987, other state laboratories took part in the monitoring programme. Five years later, when radiation levels were reduced considerably, most of the state laboratories reduced their monitoring programmes again; many state laboratories even cut off their survey activities. Until 2011, the radioactivity survey was mainly supported by the specialised laboratories. The core meltings of the Fukushima-Daiji NPPs gave a short increase in the survey activities for

the years 2011/2012 in Switzerland.

132 Radiation Effects in Materials

more than 1 mSv/year.

**2. Legislation of the radioactivity controls in Switzerland**

In Switzerland, the radioactivity survey is a task of the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG), an office of the Federal Department of Home Affairs. One aspect is the monitoring of food, which is done in collaboration with the state laboratories of the cantons. In 1991, the Federal Assembly of the Swiss Confederation enforced the *Radiological Protection Act* [3] along with several Ordinances (e.g., the *Radiological Protection Ordinance*) [4]. The assessment of food is regulated in the *Ordinance on Contaminants and Constituents in Food* from 1994 (**Table 1**) [5]. This ordinance regulates the most important groups of radionuclides in a special way. For artificial radionuclides, two limits are set. The "tolerance values" should not be exceeded when food is grown or produced with good manufacturing practise. When values are over the tolerance limit, the food is considered as "reduced in its value". "Limit values" are of toxico‐ logical concern. When they are exceeded, the consumption of this food may lead to a dose of

In emergency situations, when radioactive contamination may occur, special limit values are formulated. After the accident of Chernobyl, such special conditions were formulated for imports from East European countries [6]. Each importation of wild grown mushrooms has to be documented by an importation certificate, which documents a radiocaesium level below 600 Bq/kg. In 2011, the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office enforced precautions for the importation of Japanese food and feed origin from animals. Importations from specific prefectures have to be accompanied by a certificate of a radiocaesium analysis of the food [6, 7]. The Federal Office of Public Health will implement revised ordinances for Japan and Special tolerance and limit values for game: 600/1250 Bq/kg and wild berries: 100/1250 Bq/kg.

Special limit value for 210Po in seafood: 150 Bq/kg.

All values in Bq/kg. First value of each row: tolerance value; second value: limit value. Second line: limits of the ordinance for imports of food from or origin of Japan (2011) [7].

**Table 1.** Ordinance on contaminants and constituents in food (1995). Appendix No. 6: "List of limit values for radionuclides" [5].
