19.07.2024
Left out in the rain
Dear readers,
For Swiss consumers, quality and seasonality is a high priority. This was the result of a survey by Bring! Labs that appeared in the June issue of Persönlich magazine. The survey results are confirmed by the study «How Switzerland Cooks» by the ZHAW School of Management and Law in cooperation with the cooking app V-Kitchen. The study shows: regionality and seasonality are more important than organic. «First and foremost, food should taste good, and be fresh and healthy. Use of regional and seasonal ingredients is far more important to the survey respondents than whether food products are organically grown.»
The same study reveals a lack of understanding of the meaning of «food waste». While food waste is a topic that is often discussed, the survey indicates that many people are unaware of exactly what the term means. For example, less than half of the survey respondents consider «spoiled food that is thrown away or composted» to be a type of food waste. «Only one in five respondents agreed that food scraps fed to animals should be considered wasted food». The fact is, however, that such food does count as food waste – regardless of whether it ends up in compost or in an animal's stomach. The food was originally intended to end up on our plates.
The ZHAW study also makes clear that when it comes to combating food waste, older people are leading the way. Young people are more likely to throw something out, while older people tend to eat leftovers. One very interesting finding is that the generation-specific attitude to food waste is linked to a different understanding of sustainability. Older people believe sustainability includes eating food that is in season and comes from regional sources, while to younger respondents’ sustainability mostly means not eating meat and consuming organic food. Even if the meaning of «food waste» remains a little uncertain for many, helping to prevent food from being wasted gives consumers a feeling of satisfaction. There was evidence of this also in the study Fokus Food Save 2024 presented by the Institute for Market Supply and Consumer Decision-Making at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland.
The surveys have something in common: they ascribe food waste only in the processing and, above all in the consumption of food. The Swiss Federal Council also takes this short-sighted view. This can be seen in the agreement reached between Federal Councillor Simonetta Sommaruga and food industry representatives in 2022. The «Plan of Action for the Avoidance of Preventable Food Waste» (also launched in 2022), does actually mention that 13 percent of food waste occurs in agricultural production, but it limits the corrective measures to «the selling off of overproduced goods by civic organizations», for example.
An obvious factor that’s being ignored here is food waste in the field resulting from insufficient use of crop protection products. This is not the only factor that is being overlooked, either: inadequate crop protection prior to harvesting leads to food waste during storage. Fungal infestations dramatically reduce shelf life. This aspect of food waste (also referred to as «food loss») is for the most part disregarded. It is a harsh reality, however, and accounts for a significant share of food waste. Such waste is all too plainly visible in agriculture this year.
Potato farmers are facing a precarious situation. We have summarized the situation in a media review on swiss-food.ch. As a result of the heavy rainfall, late blight and tuber blight are spreading. The headline «Late blight is raging» is seen over and over, but the BauernZeitung agricultural newspaper also offers assistance in making the tough decision about when a field should be considered hopeless and must be plowed to prevent the pathogen from spreading further. Three hundred hectares of potato fields have already had to be abandoned – and more may follow. The late blight and tuber blight pathogens spread in wet conditions at temperatures between 15° and 25° Celsius. BauernZeitung spoke with Simon Hauert, a farmer in Niederösch in the canton of Bern. «I’ve never seen such a heavy infestation before,» Hauert said. The online magazine Watson expects this to be a fateful year for Swiss potatoes.
The damage is extensive. While the farmers are asking themselves if they should even continue planting potatoes after the third difficult growing year in a row, the Federal Council is practicing disaster prevention. As an exception, the maximum number of applications has been increased for many fungicides. Even organic farmers have been given permission to spray more copper fungicide. More imported potatoes will end up being consumed in Switzerland as a result of the considerable crop failures. Consumers may prefer regional food products harvested in season, but their wishes cannot be fulfilled without proactive crop protection. Emergency authorizations are able to stop the damage from spreading, but they cannot eliminate it.
The impact of the wet weather conditions on regional production has extended beyond just potatoes. Fruit has also suffered as a result of the wet springtime conditions, as the Grüne magazine reports. Cherries have unfortunately been bursting as a result. The organic agriculture association BioSuisse is also reporting that scab infestation is at a very high level in pome fruit and that there are major losses of summer onions. «Bio Suisse therefore expects to see smaller harvests of these and other crops in 2024 and will reduce its harvest estimates accordingly to reflect these changes», according to BauernZeitung. Schweizer Bauer and foodaktuell also report that there is growing concern about mycotoxins in wheat. This is because the rain is leading to the formation of Fusaria fungal pathogens. These carcinogenic fungal toxins can be combated with fungicides. If fungicides are not included in the measures that policymakers prescribe to reduce the risks associated with crop protection products, however, it will no longer be possible to deal with the real dangers. The wheat will be inedible for both people and animals. The problems relating to sugar beets are also multiplying, because the warm temperatures are aiding a Cercospora infestation. Although this fungal disease is not harmful to humans, it does cause massive harvest losses.
The approach of implementing emergency measures regarding the use of crop protection products is another aspect of the policy being sold in political jargon as «risk reduction». This «risk reduction» in the context of crop protection products has resulted in an increased risk of harvest failures. The risk of food impurities is also on the rise. There is a simple reason for this. Politicians and the public focus one-sidedly on the inherent danger («hazard») of plant protection products or other chemical substances and prefer to ban them straight away rather than prescribing adequate conditions of use, i.e. addressing the actual risks. The distinction between the two terms «risk» and «hazard» is of great importance for the entire chemical industry: under the risk-based approach, it is not only the hazard potential of a substance that is relevant, but also the actual risk potential if the substance is used in a certain way and quantity. Well understood: There are risks, because plant protection products have to be effective against pests and fungi. However, the fact that there is also a risk of not using pesticides because they also have a benefit has been completely ignored.
In the interim report for the «Plant Protection Action Plan», the Federal Council therefore announced that the environmental goals are on track, but the goal of ensuring crop protection will be difficult to achieve. In other words, the actual aim of agriculture in Switzerland – to provide people with sufficient quantities of high-quality and affordable food – is acutely at risk. The risk involved in not using technologies can be a greater danger to humanity than the risk associated with the technology itself, which also can be minimized by proper use. But our perception of risk is distorted: Often we fear the wrong thing. Or as Andreas Hensel, a German microbiologist, puts it «there is no evidence suggesting that anyone in Germany has suffered poisoning from pesticides in food. Yet many people are afraid this will happen to them.» The risk of becoming ill due to «contaminated food» or to die from eating it is many times greater. According to the WHO (World Health Organization), approximately 600 million people — about one in ten people worldwide — become ill from eating such food products annually, and 420'000 of them die. WHO provides a list of what it considers «contaminants» – crop protection products are not on the list. This is because crop protection products are subject to a stringent authorization process, and their approval status is reviewed regularly.
How can farmers find the solutions they need to grow our food? First of all, it is important to bear in mind that – as in the field of medicine – the best, most innovative, and varied mechanisms of action are needed to combat plant diseases. It must be understood that the right set of measures can reduce the risks of using crop protection products. This also creates the trust and confidence needed to finally clear the backlog of approvals for these products.
Robust varieties are also needed. In plant breeding, however, the focus is elsewhere. At swiss-food we have discussed this blockade of innovation. Especially with regard to potatoes, new breeding technologies such as CRISPR/Cas would make it possible to achieve convincing results more quickly than conventional breeding. For example, popular varieties with broad consumer acceptance could be made resistant more quickly. That is easier than having to acclimatize consumers to new varieties. And what is true of potatoes, also applies to wine. With a Riesling or Pinot Noir, consumers know what to expect. That is not the case when it comes to a newly invented variety.
We wish you a wonderful summer to come (finally)! Perhaps during your vacation travels you will get the chance to speak with farmers about this difficult planting season, and about how they are literally being left out in the rain by politicians and the authorities.
The swiss-food editorial team
