Number of Swiss farms dwindles while organic share rises

Last year there were 47,719 farms in Switzerland, 625 fewer than a year earlier. More and more farms are producing organically: their share now stands at 16.5%, and they cover a fifth of the utilised agricultural area. In 2023, 7,896 farms were cultivating their land according to organic farming guidelines, 77 more than the previous year (1%), the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) reported on Tuesday. However, there has been a slowdown compared with the years 2019 to 2022. The cantons of Schaffhausen (23.8%) and Geneva (17.3%) recorded a sharp rise in the number of organic farms. Organic farmers have 190,000 hectares of farmland at their disposal, 3,700 hectares more than in 2022 (2%). This corresponds to almost a fifth (18.2%) of Switzerland’s utilised agricultural area. Organic farms are slightly larger than the average (24.1 hectares, compared with 21.8 hectares). + Organic farming continues to grow in Switzerland In 2023, Switzerland’s utilised agricultural area covered 1.04 ...