More Drought: farmers mobilize, the fodder bag arrives (cross-border guide)

Context

The drought that is affecting Europe has also reached Switzerland, putting pressure on the country's crops and farms. Faced with this critical situation, the Zurich Peasants' Union (ZBV) and the Schaffhausen Peasants' Union (SHBV) launched a double appeal. Large distributors are asking for an immediate adjustment of prices and withdrawal conditions, while among farms an "autumn fodder exchange" is promoted to exchange resources and ensure the survival of the entire supply chain.

According to data from the Federal Office of Agriculture (FOAG), cereal production in Switzerland is expected to fall by 20% compared to last year. This translates into a loss of over 100 million francs for the agricultural supply chain. 📊

"Farmers are doing everything they can to maintain production, but drought is an impossible challenge to overcome on their own," says the Federal Office of Agriculture. "Rapid and decisive intervention by the government and distributors is needed to support the agricultural supply chain and ensure the country's food security."

The Zurich Farmers' Union (ZBV) and the Schaffhausen Farmers' Union (SHBV) have already established a set of requirements for the “autumn fodder bag”. Participants must guarantee the quality of the products exchanged, as well as the safety and traceability of the goods. In addition, the exchange will only be open to farms that have already received a contribution from the government

Operational details

Planning for intermediate crops must start on time, even if the long-awaited rain takes time to arrive. To facilitate exchanges, an online fodder exchange has been created that puts the offerer and the searcher in direct contact, without bureaucracy.

Drought has been affecting Swiss agriculture for several weeks. According to data from the Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG), rainfall was lower than normal for 30% of the country's agricultural areas. Farmers are facing great difficulties to produce the same harvests as a normal year.

"Drought is a problem we can no longer ignore. We need to act quickly to protect crops and secure food production for the future.” - Dr. Urs Niggli, President of the Swiss Farmers' Union.

To help farmers, the Swiss Confederation has allocated 10 million francs for the safety of crops. The sum was divided into three parts: 5 million for water supply, 3 million for livestock breeding and 2 million for crop protection.

The online fodder bag has been created to facilitate exchanges between those offering and those looking for fodder. The platform was developed in collaboration with the Swiss Confederation and the Peasants' Association. Users can register and search for fodder based on their location and needs.

A concrete example is the case of a farmer from Lucerne

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Key points

The principle reiterated by the Swiss Confederation for International Cooperation (SDC) and Bio Switzerland (ZBV) is a clear and deliberate alternative to care logic. “Large distributors as partners for tailored withdrawal conditions (including at the price level) and lived solidarity within agriculture: instead of putting state support at the centre, participants from the entire value-added chain take their responsibility and use the options available.”

This new logic is particularly important in rural Switzerland, where drought is becoming a growing concern. The 2022 drought hit the Tavolara region in the canton of Freiburg hard, where fodder production fell by 30%. The same thing happened in the canton of Bern, where cereal production fell by 25%.

To address this situation, the ZBV has launched a project to create a fodder bag. This bag will allow farmers to exchange fodder with each other, reducing dependence on external markets and increasing food security. The project also includes the creation of a reservation system for fodder, in order to guarantee the availability of this essential product.

The ZBV has already reached an agreement with some large distributors, such as Coop and Migros, to create a fodder exchange network. This agreement requires distributors to provide farmers

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Source: swissinfo.ch