Organic growth up in Switzerland

In Switzerland, organic sales were able to maintain the same level in 2021 as in 2020, with organic sales last year breaking the CHF4 billion mark for the first time, as growth amounted to 3.9%.

It can get increasingly harder for foreign dairies and other agricultural product producers to join in on the organic trend in Switzerland, as the Bio Suisse organisation works on making the entire value chain more sustainable and therefore wishes to switch to Swiss organic produce as much as possible.

The organisation has already had some successes. For example, supermarket chain COOP’s goal is to only use Swiss grain with for its organic bread by 2026. Also, as of this year, Swiss organic dairy cattle may only receive 5% concentrated feed. “We are thus freeing up arable land for human consumption,” claims Bio Suisse president Urs Brändli.

Due to the war in Ukraine, among other things, the costs are also increasing for organic farmers. “The effect of the higher milk price fizzles out due to these higher costs,” Brändli says. Bio Suisse will therefore be asking for an adjustment of the milk pay this year.

“Otherwise no more milk producers will switch to organic and the young farmers will opt out in the medium term,” he adds. The amount of the claim is currently under discussion.

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