Natural resources
Soil, water and other natural resources form the foundation of sustainable agriculture. Swiss farming families work each and every day to nurture and protect these valuable resources. By carefully managing meadows, pastures and soil as well as using water efficiently, they actively contribute to preserving these essential foundations for life – both for the environment and for future generations.
Soil – the basis of life
Soil provides the basis for the production of food and thus the basis of human existence. Fertile soil is a valuable commodity that is taken care of by Swiss farming families. However, our soil is under threat. In Switzerland, one square metre of cultivated land is lost every second as a result of falling victim to construction projects.
Fertile soil does not come about from one day to the next. The soil we find in Switzerland today started its development around 10,000 years ago. It is formed from rocks that have been eroded and weathered. When the first plants that become established decay, they add valuable humus. This contains important nutrients for the growth of plants.
A careful approach promotes the environment
Unlike many fields in which arable crops are grown, meadows and pastures are home to various plant species. Depending on the location, between 4 and 50 species can be found in a single field. A distinction is made between grasses, clovers and herbs. Meadows and pastures contribute to biodiversity and provide a valuable habitat for numerous plant and animals species. Farmers attempt to minimise the environmental impact by cultivating these areas extensively. By avoiding the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, they help protect the water and soil. The meadows and pastures also act as natural carbon sinks by sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In doing so, they make an active contribution to reducing the greenhouse effect and to climate protection. Incidentally, alpine farming takes place almost exclusively on meadows and pastures.
Food for our animals
Artificial meadows are an important addition that serve to complement natural meadows and pastures. These are areas that we use specifically to produce grass, hay or silage for our livestock. To this end, we sow mixtures of grasses and clovers that remain on the same area of land for at least two years. This adds organic matter to the soil and feeds the soil microorganisms. This is important in order to ensure that we can use the soil in the long term. Despite their intensive use, artificial meadows provide a habitat for insects, breeding birds, amphibians and reptiles. It is therefore important that farmers are particularly careful when mowing. For example, they first comb the meadow in order to save young hares or fawns, mow early in the morning from the inside out and do not mow everything at the same time.
Natural green spaces
Reed meadows are one of the few naturally occurring green spaces found in Western Europe. They are moist, nutrient-rich meadows that are situated close to rivers, lakes or wetlands. Many rare and endangered animals and plants species find a habitat here that they would have difficulty in finding elsewhere. The management of read meadows requires that special attention be paid to ensure that the specific needs of wetlands are met. For example, reed meadow are not fertilised or are only fertilised with manure and are cut no more than twice a year. This allows for reed meadows to be preserved and their function as environmentally valuable habitats to be maintained. The protection and maintenance of these unique ecosystems are of great significance for the preservation of biodiversity and the ecological balance in Switzerland.
Careful use of water
Without water, plants cannot grow. Farmers currently only irrigate around 5 percent of agricultural land. Climate change and the ever drier summers associated with it are increasing the need for irrigation. Thanks to soil probes, water requirements can be determined very precisely, meaning the amount of water used can be optimised. At present, Swiss agriculture uses around 10 percent of Switzerland’s total water consumption for irrigation. This represents significantly lower water consumption than in the rest of Europe.
Switzerland’s groundwater and drinking water are of a very high quality. For smaller surface waters such as streams, especially in the intensively utilised Central Plateau, there is still a need for action. This is where the plant protection action plan comes in with its 51 measures. Its goal is to reduce agricultural residues in water bodies.
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Biodiversity
To receive direct payments, Swiss farming families must promote biodiversity. They are dependent on a high level of biodiversity in order to do their work.
Fodder crops
Thanks to the country’s lush meadows and pastures, Swiss cows, sheep and goats can largely be fed with roughage. The silage process means that the fodder has a long shelf life.
