Consumer issues in Switzerland - from head lice lotion to chicken nuggets. Plus, an appeal for winter clothes for asylum seekers, drop off in Nyon and Gland.
If you are interested in consumer issues here in French speaking Switzerland and want to know more about the products and services you buy and use, then Living in Nyon can recommend two excellent sources of information. The first is "Bon A Savoir" (Good to Know) - a monthly magazine which can be found in many newsagents including Naville.
At just CHF 4.50 it's packed with info and tests on products. November's issue tested 8 different bottles of head lice lotion and produced a graph with its results. See here.
Also in this month's issue are tests on the dried fruit that can be found for sale in main supermarkets. These fruits were checked for their pesticide and preservative content, provenance, cost per 100g etc. The results are surprising!
Not all of the tests are not available online, you have to subscribe or buy the magazine to see all the results. However the savings to be found in some of the magazine's comparative testings on products such as health insurance premiums, and telephone charges more than make up for the purchase price! Even if your French is quite basic, you should be able to understand the tests and their results.
A Bon Entendeur (ABE) is a television programme produced by RTS TV and broadcast on a Tuesday night and this also covers consumer issues ranging from an analysis of the actual meat content in the chicken nuggets that are sold in shops and fast food outlets, to the maze of "packages" offered by telephone and internet companies to consumers. See a programme from the 14th October here
Mens clothing and toiletries required for asylum seekers in Gland
EVAM, the (Etablissement Vaudois D'accueil des Migrants) in Gland has put out an urgent appeal for warm coats, jackets, jeans, trousers , belts, shoes (all kinds), socks, gloves, woolly hats, scarves, back-packs, hold-alls, bath towels (all sizes) and toiletries for the male asylum seekers currently in the Gland reception centre and waiting a decision on their future. At this stage of their asylum application, the men are not allowed to work unless their application status changes. Further info here
Clothes can be dropped off at the following places.
1. Nyon: Centre Horizons, Maison de Paroisse, ch. des Eules. Bin at door.
2. Gland: Chapelle Catholique, chemin de l'Abbaye, go down steps on left - bin
For further info on the work of EVAM see their frequently asked questions page on their website here.