“Swiss, take care at the battle of Morgarten!”

After Zurich and Basel, Migros took the «pasteurised milk war» to Schaffhausen. Its targeted actions, including illegally selling milk and giving it away, contributed to the liberalisation of the pasteurised milk market in 1965.

After the ‘milk war’ in Zurich and Basel is settled, it flares up again in the autumn of 1962 in Schaffhausen. The pattern is the same, with just a few regional differences: Migros applies to the cantonal authorities for permission to sell pasteurised milk. The processing of the application is delayed, and Migros starts selling without permission, obtaining the milk illegally from the Migros Cooperative Zurich, which owns a large pasteurised milk plant. Like his Basel counterpart, the director of the Migros Cooperative Schafffhausen, Franz Schmid, is fined. And like his colleague, he refuses to stop selling the milk.
And so one morning in January 1963, the police arrive at the Migros Market in Schaffhausen, seize the previous day’s milk and deliver it to the Salvation Army and an old people’s home.
A short time later, the loudspeakers in the shop announce that free milk is available on the ground floor. Schmid gives away the day’s freshly delivered milk and has a collection box set up for voluntary donations. Standing on top of an egg crate, Schmid explains that he “is the notorious defendant” in the Schaffhausen milk war, and thanks his customers for their loyal support in the battle: “They think that we will get tired over time and give up the fight. I can assure you though, that we will not get tired and the battle continues.” Schmid has to be patient though, as it is another two years before the sale of pasteurised milk is permitted throughout Switzerland.