Drought 2025: 54 million in loans to farms (cross-border guide)

Context

In a nutshell

• Bern allocates 54 million francs in interest-free loans to farms affected by the summer drought
• Guy Parmelin defends the choice to resort to loans instead of non-repayable aid
• The President of the Confederation indicates the most urgent challenge in the supply of fodder
• Drought affects much of Europe, with imports of fodder from Canada

Key facts

• What : Appropriation of CHF 54 million in interest-free loans for drought-affected farms
• When: Summer 2025 (the news refers to last Sunday, specific date not indicated in the source text)
• Where: Switzerland, with an extension of the drought phenomenon at European level
• Who: Federal Council, Federal Department of Economics, Training and Research (Guy Parmelin, President of the Confederation)
• Amount: CHF 54 million (interest-free loans)
• Legal framework: No current legal basis for non-repayable aid, as stated by Parmelin
• Comparison of federal accounts: Without the measures adopted today, the Federal Council estimates a deficit of 1.3 billion in the federal budget
• External context: Imports of fodder from Canada due to the drought affecting much of Europe

Parmelin's response to criticism from the agricultural world

The President of the Confederation Guy Parmelin spoke on Sunday on the RTS news 19h30 to respond to the

Operational details

Fodder: the most immediate challenge for the agricultural sector

In addition to financial aid, the main concern now concerns the supply of fodder for the coming winter. Parmelin pointed to this as the most immediate challenge for the industry, faced at the microphones of RTS. "There is climate change, it's obvious. Twentyyears ago it was not possible to plant Merlot in my region, whereas today it is. In the future, the emergency will concern the supply of fodder for the winter and the end of winter, "said the president of the Confederation.

The situation is made more complex by the fact that drought affects a large part of Europe. "Currently there are imports from Canada, because we must consider that drought is a European problem," Parmelin continued. The logistical difficulties are also aggravated by the low level of important European waterways, a detail that complicates the transport of goods and raw materials by river.

What changes compared to the Covid-19 crisis

The difference with what happened during the pandemic is clear and Parmelin made it clear: during the health crisis we operated in the context of the right of urgency, a legal basis that is missing today. This means that, in the absence of a new legislative intervention or a declaration of extraordinary situation, the Federal Council can only act with ordinary instruments: loans, advances on direct payments and measures of

Useful tools to protect your net income

To reduce FX leakage, compare CHF-EUR exchange options and banks for cross-border workers.

Key points

Cosa fare concretamente per le aziende agricole colpite

Le aziende agricole che hanno subito danni dalla siccità estiva possono accedere ai 54 milioni di franchi stanziati dalla Confederazione sotto forma di prestiti senza interessi. Questi prestiti sono pensati per garantire liquidità immediata, non per coprire perdite strutturali. Le aziende interessate devono rivolgersi ai competenti uffici cantonali dell'agricoltura per avviare la procedura di richiesta.

In parallelo, le aziende possono richiedere l'anticipo dei pagamenti diretti, uno strumento ordinario della politica agricola federale che non richiede nuove basi legali. L'anticipo dei pagamenti diretti è una leva operativa attivabile rapidamente e rappresenta una fonte di liquidità aggiuntiva rispetto ai prestiti senza interessi.

Scenario: cosa succede se la siccità prosegue

Se la siccità dovesse prolungarsi nei prossimi mesi, il problema principale diventerà l'approvvigionamento di foraggio per l'inverno, come indicato dallo stesso Parmelin. In questo scenario, le importazioni dall'estero (come quelle già in corso dal Canada) potrebbero diventare la norma, con un conseguente aumento dei costi logistici, aggravato dal basso livello dei corsi d'acqua europei che complica il trasporto fluviale.

In assenza di una base legale per aiuti a fondo perduto, un eventuale ampliamento dell'intervento federale richiederebbe un passaggio parlamentare o l'attivazione del diritto d'urgenza. Al momento, la fonte non menziona l'avvio di tali procedure.

…