Drought leaves Swiss farms facing rising costs and lost harvests

Farmers across Switzerland are facing higher costs and sharply reduced harvests after a hot, dry summer, SRF reports. The Swiss Farmers’ Union estimates the damage to agriculture at more than 500 million francs.

Adrian Tschanz, who runs a farm in Seedorf in the Bernese Seeland, had to buy around 60 bales of silage as a substitute for grass. The feed cost about 10,000 francs, he said, an expense he would not have faced if his pastures had produced enough.

Buying feed is not unusual, but the amount needed this year was high. Tschanz also reported higher veterinary bills because the cows suffered in the heat, as well as flu and fertility problems among the animals. Dry conditions brought more pests, but the farm lacked the resources to tackle them.

The financial impact on his farm is not yet clear. A good harvest the previous year has helped provide a buffer, including feed reserves. Tschanz said his youngest daughter tried to lift his spirits by leaving a gold-painted potato and a card on his desk. He said it was important not to lose the joy of farming and to look ahead to a fresh start.

Ralf Bucher, head of production, markets and ecology at the Swiss Farmers’ Union, said few parts of the country had escaped the drought. A lack of rain in autumn made conditions worse. Potato yields were the worst on record, sugar beet crops failed completely in some places, and forage production fell sharply in both summer and autumn, he said.

Many farms have been able to draw on financial and feed reserves built up last year, but Bucher said those buffers would be gone by next year. Farmers hope for enough rain and an early start to the grazing season so they can turn their animals out in spring.

In the Jura arc, where calcareous soils made the drought particularly severe, many of the roughly 850 farms in Basel-Landschaft have also been affected. The cantonal parliament has approved two million francs in emergency loans, which will be interest-free and repayable over 10 years. Farms will be able to borrow between 10,000 and 50,000 francs.

At the end of August, the federal government approved an additional 54 million francs for interest-free operating loans to farms affected by drought. The federal government and cantons provide this assistance in equal amounts. In Basel-Landschaft, two million francs from each will make four million francs available.