Camel festival draws international visitors to Oberglatt

Camels and visitors from around the world gathered at Ben’s Camel Farm in Oberglatt for its 15th camel festival, SRF reported. Guests travelled from as far away as Saudi Arabia to attend the event.

The farm is run by Kamel Ben Salem, a Tunisian who has lived in Switzerland since 2000. After working in various fields for two years, he asked himself whether he should keep camels or return to Tunisia. He chose camel farming.

Camels are part of Ben Salem’s family history. His grandparents were also involved in camel breeding. “For me, my mother and father come first, then the camel,” he said. “That was the case in the past, and it is still the case today.”

Keeping camels in Switzerland is financially challenging. Camel breeding does not receive subsidies in the country, and demand for camel products is low. Ben Salem therefore relies mainly on tourism and events, which account for 80 percent of his income. The remaining 20 percent comes from products such as camel milk and, occasionally, the sale of a camel calf.

The festival is intended to encourage cultural exchange between the Arab world and the village of Oberglatt. The programme included a traditional Tunisian folk dance featuring acrobatics with clay jugs.

Among the visitors was Saad Al-Omda, the vice-president of the global camel sports federation, who travelled from Saudi Arabia. People also came from Africa, while a television crew from Tunisia’s national broadcaster Télévision Tunisienne reported on Ben Salem’s experience of moving from southern Tunisia to central Europe to establish the project.

Ben Salem says the farm makes him happy and that giving it up is not an option. He says it contains a great deal of love. For him, the camels are more than working animals: they connect his native Tunisia with his new home in Switzerland.

According to Wolfgang Zenker, a veterinarian at Knies Children’s Zoo, camels can be kept appropriately in Switzerland. Although they originally come from dry regions, they do not generally depend on high temperatures. Bactrian camels in particular are adapted to very cold conditions and can cope with the Swiss climate.