There is always a panic in the run-up to a major sporting event. The stadium isn't finished. Or the transport system is in chaos. In advance of Euro 2008, the Swiss have been yodelling about a national sausage and chips shortage.

You'd think that the absence of fans from the British Isles would have taken the pressure off the fryers of Geneva and Zurich. But the Swiss Government has had to step in to avert the possibility of chants of “who ate all the fries?” The Swiss potato industry association, Swisspatat, issued a dire warning that demand for potatoes had already risen before the tournament, which starts next month, and that, with fans flocking in from all over Europe, a shortage of spuds loomed. The Swiss eat mostly home-grown potatoes but, after careful consideration, the Government agreed that an extra 5,000 tonnes could be imported. It is hoped that this will be enough.

Of graver concern is the fate of the national sausage. Cervelat, a short, stumpy banger loved by the Swiss, is encased in cows' intestines that are imported from Brazil. Fears about BSE led to a ban on the import of the Brazilian intestines, threatening the very future of the sausage and prompting national soul-searching. A task force was dispatched to Paraguay, where a supply is believed to have been secured. But the latest reports suggest that keeping the grills filled could be touch and go.

Austria, the co-hosts, have yet to report any similar culinary worries and in Vienna visitors are being presented with a guidebook to help them to order the local delicacies. It contains key phrases, such as “do you have a sliced sugared pancake with plum compote?” and “another gherkin for me, please”.

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