Protein feed stocks released in Switzerland: up to 16,000 tonnes (cross-border guide)

Context

In a nutshell

• Unlocked mandatory protein feed stocks in Switzerland
• Withdrawable up to almost 16,000 tons (20% of the total)
• Cause: low level of Rhine and Danube restricts imports
• Government can release the entire volume if the crisis worsens

Key facts

• What: Placing on the market of part of the mandatory stocks of protein feed
• When: Announcement of the previous Wednesday; withdrawals active from the day after the announcement
• Where: Switzerland, federal decision from Bern
• Who: Country Economic Supply Delegate (AEP) Roland Pfister
• Amount: Up to 20% of the total quantity, equal to almost 16,000 tons
• Product: Foods rich in protein intended for animal feed, such as soy flour
• Cause: Highly reduced Rhine and Danube water levels, with severe import restrictions
• Future scenario: The Government may authorise the release of the entire volume of stocks by order

From tomorrow, Swiss farmers will be able to draw on national compulsory protein feed stocks to face the supply difficulties that have been putting pressure on the livestock sector for several weeks. This was decided by the delegate to the Economic Supply of the Country (AEP) Roland Pfister, following the announcement last Wednesday. The measure provides for the possibility of withdrawing a maximum of 20% of the total quantity stored,

Operational details

Who impacts the measurement and why

The decision primarily affects the Swiss livestock supply chain, which depends to a significant extent on imports of protein feed for dairy cattle, suviatii and poultry. Soybean meal, expressly recalled by the source, is one of the most important components of the animal food ration, in particular for the poultry and dairy sector, widespread both in German Switzerland — among the main production basins are cantons such as Bern, Lucerne, St. Gallen and Thurgau — and in Romanian Switzerland, with Vaud, Freiburg and Neuchâtel among the most involved areas.

Comparison with the previous situation

Until the announcement last Wednesday, the mandatory stocks remained intact and unavailable on the market: the processing industry and farmers could only count on regular imports, progressively reduced by the decline in water levels of the Rhine and the Danube. With the withdrawal of up to 20% of the total quantity — almost 16,000 tons — an alternative supply route is temporarily restored, without the source specifying either the duration of the opening or the concrete procedure of request by the operators.

Worsening Scenario

The source leaves open an explicit hypothesis: if the level of the great European rivers should remain low or fall further, the Federal Government has already announced the possibility of authorizing, through

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Key points

What to do concretely: the procedure for operators

For supply chain operators — feed producers, farmers, agricultural cooperatives — the source does not report a public procedure for requesting compulsory stocks: no forms, submission deadlines, or cantonal reference offices are indicated. The source merely establishes that withdrawals are possible from the day after Pfister's announcement, up to a maximum of 20% of the total quantity (nearly 16,000 tonnes). At this stage, the most useful operational guidance is to follow the official communications from the AEP and the Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG), which normally publish the instructions for accessing compulsory stocks through their institutional channels.

Scenario A — stable situation

If the water levels of the Rhine and the Danube were to rise again in the coming weeks, imports of soybean meal and other protein feeds would progressively return to normal. In this case, the 20% withdrawal from compulsory stocks would be enough to cover the transition period, without further intervention by the Federal Council.

Scenario B — deterioration

If the water drought on the two major rivers were to persist or worsen, the source explicitly states that the Government may authorise, by ordinance, the release of the entire volume of compulsory stocks. In this case, farmers would have the entire national strategic stock at their disposal, with extended coverage effects but also signalling a prolonged logistical crisis.

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