Swiss Farmers' Union

Last updated

Swiss Farmers' Union
AbbreviationSFU
Formation1897
Founded atBern
TypeAssociation (Switzerland)
PurposeRepresents the interests of the farming community, in particular towards the Federal Authorities, Politicians, and Economic and Social Partners. [1]
Location
Martin Rufer
Website https://www.sbv-usp.ch

The Swiss Farmers' Union (SFU; until 2013 Schweizerischer Bauernverband; French : Union Suisse des Paysans (USP), Italian : Unione Svizzera dei Contadini (USC), Romansh : Uniun Purila Svizra (UPS) represents the interests of the farming community in Switzerland as an umbrella organization and is considered one of the most influential organizations in the country. [2] [3]

Contents

History

The headquarters of the Swiss Farmers' Union at Laurstrasse 10 in Brugg Haus des Schweizer Bauern.jpg
The headquarters of the Swiss Farmers' Union at Laurstrasse 10 in Brugg

The association was established in 1897 in Bern Town Hall. [4] Its co-founders were Johann Jenny and Caspar Decurtins. Three years later, the association's headquarters were relocated from Bern to Brugg, as the wife of the association's director, Ernst Laur, was from there and was unwilling to relocate to Bern. Another influential figure in the early years was Fritz Zaugg. Over time, the modest Farmers' Secretariat (Schweizerisches Bauernsekretariat; SBS for short) evolved into a sizable association with over 80 permanent employees through the establishment of new departments. In 1941, the Swiss Rural Women's Association joined the SFU. [5] In 1937, the SFU was pivotal in establishing the Agricultural Information Service (AIS). [6] In 1947, a placement office for agricultural workers and trainees was established. Workers were initially recruited mainly from Italy, and later from Spain, Portugal, and Yugoslavia. [7] In the mid-1970s, the Swiss Confederation transferred the central evaluation of accounting results to the Swiss Confederation's Center of Excellence for Agricultural Research in Tänikon. As a result, the SFU was reorganized in 1979 and the SBS was dissolved. The focus shifted to influencing the legislative process in favor of agriculture and providing services to members. [8] In 1981, the Small Farmers' Association was accepted as a section, before leaving in 1982 due to differences over the Small Farmers' Initiative. [9]

In 1995, the association began offering Internet services under the name agri.ch. After a Management buyout, the company became green.ch in 2001.

Organization and objectives

The association is composed of representatives of 25 cantonal farmers' associations and 60 agricultural umbrella and specialized organizations (21 from the animal production sector, 13 from the crop production sector, 4 cooperative associations, and 22 from other sectors; as of November 2023). [10]

The affiliated sub-associations represent some 49,000 farms. [11] They elect 500 members to the Assembly of Delegates, which defines the goals of the association and makes fundamental decisions. The delegates elect a 100-member Chamber of Agriculture (LAKA), which is responsible for securing income, making submissions to the authorities, and supervising management. The Board of Directors consists of 18 to 21 members. It deals with the day-to-day business of the Association, forms specialist commissions, and appoints the members of the Secretariat.

SFU Director Martin Rufer [12] and his deputy Urs Schneider can lobby directly in the Federal Palace. They were granted access to the parliament building by SFU President and National Councillor Markus Ritter. [13] [14] Ritter is the first organic farmer to hold this position. [15] Among the more than 40 "farmer parliamentarians" of the Swiss Farmers' Association are Charles Juillard, a member of the Council of States, Leo Müller, a member of the National Council, and Nicolò Paganini, a member of the National Council and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Migros Cooperative Eastern Switzerland. [16]

The SFU has set itself the following goals To provide a range of services to farmers, to preserve the family farm, to provide farmers with an adequate income, to influence the legal framework, to use the land wisely, to produce quality products through transparent production processes and designations of origin, to protect cultivated land and to preserve nature.

To achieve these goals, the SFU operates various service companies, including Agrimpuls (Job placement), Agriprof (Education), Agriexpert (Fiduciary services, Legal and Valuation issues), the Agricultural Construction and Architecture Firm LBA, and the Agrisano Companies. The latter are five legally and economically independent companies (Agrisano Foundation, Agrisano Health Insurance Ltd., Agrisano Insurance Ltd., Agrisano Prevos, and Agrisano Pencas) that work together to offer farming families and their employees self-developed personal insurance solutions tailored to their needs. Agrisano works closely with the cantonal Agricultural Professional Organizations, which operate regional offices for Agrisano.

Financing

The Farmers' Union is financed two-thirds by income from its services and one-third by contributions from its member sections. These contributions are paid directly or indirectly by the farming families and amount to approximately CHF 100.-- to CHF 150.-- per family per year, depending on the size of the farm. The farm families' contributions are divided 3:2 into area contributions and production contributions. The reason for this division is that it takes into account both the area cultivated and the added value of the various branches of production. The Assembly of Delegates votes annually on the area contributions and also decides every four years on the product contributions, which are adjusted to the current share of final production.

The most recent decision of the Assembly of Delegates adjusted the amount of product-related contributions at the beginning of 2018. The product-related contributions were recalculated based on final production and resulted in some significant changes for individual member sections. At the same time, the SFU adjusted the representation rights in the committees.

The Swiss Vegetable Producers Association (VSGP) did not accept the decision of the Delegates Assembly and decided at the end of February 2018 to withdraw from the SFU with retroactive effect from January 1, 2018. [17]

Positions

Agricultural policy 22+

The Farmers' Union welcomes the suspension of the 22+ agricultural policy, which the SFU believes offers no prospects for farming families and is immature. [18] [19]

Animal welfare

According to the association, animal welfare is very important to them. It therefore advocates clear enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act [20] - the association also opposes the slaughter of pregnant cows and cattle. According to Martin Rufer of the SFU, sanctions against slaughterhouses are more effective than fines. [21] However, the association is in favor of factory farming and opposed the federal popular initiative "For a natural farmer - against animal factories (small farmers' initiative)". It also opposes the federal popular initiative "No to factory farming in Switzerland", which will be put to the vote on September 25, 2022. [22] In addition, the SFU is committed to ensuring that direct payments to farmers (approximately CHF 2.8 billion per year) are not reduced, as the majority of these payments are tied to public services. [23] However, the SFU is a member of the Proviande trade association.

Statements

CO2 Act

After a controversial debate, the Chamber of Agriculture voted in favor of the CO2 law by 56 votes to 19, with 9 abstentions. [24]

Pesticide initiatives

According to the Farmers' Union, sustainable agriculture is very important to them. [25] However, the Swiss Farmers' Union is fighting the initiatives on drinking water and pesticides - both of which will be put to the vote on June 13, 2021[ needs update ] - because it believes they go far beyond the goal. [26] [27] According to SFU deputy director Urs Schneider, this is the biggest campaign in the 125-year history of the Swiss Farmers' Union. Schneider is coordinating the 2x NO campaign. [28]

Referendum against free trade agreement with Indonesia

The Farmers' Union supported the Free Trade Agreement with Indonesia in the referendum on March 7, 2021. [29]

Corporate Responsibility Initiative

The Chamber of Agriculture has decided to vote against the Corporate Responsibility Initiative. [30]

Board members

The 24-member SFU board is heavily dominated by the Swiss People's Party (SVP) [31] [32] and includes the following members in addition to SFU President Markus Ritter (The Center): [33]

NamePosition(s)
Anne Challandes Vice President of the SFU, President of the Swiss Farmers' and Rural Women's Union (SBLV)
Fritz Glauser [34] Vice-President of the SFU, President of the Swiss Grain Producers Association (SGPV), President of the Fribourg Farmers' Union (UPF)
Alois Huber-Troxler National Councillor, Vice President of the SFU, former President of the Aargau Farmers' Association (BVA)
Hugo AbtRepresentative of Swiss cattle producers
Claude Baehler [35] President Prométerre
Jürg Bärtschi Representative of the poultry sector
Boris Beuret [36] Representative of Swiss Milk Producers (SMP)
Andreas Bernhard [37] Livestock industry representative, President of Suisseporcs
Vincent Boillat Representative of cantons Jura, Neuchâtel, Geneva
Pierre-André Geiser [38] VR Chairman Fenaco
Sem Genini [39] Managing Director Unione Contadini Ticinesi (UCT)
Willy Giroud [40] President of the Valais Chamber of Agriculture (WLK)
Maja Grunder [41] President of the Thurgau Agricultural Association (VTL)
Ursin Gustin Representative of young farmers (JULA)
Martin Haab National Councillor, President of the Zürich Farmers' Union (ZBV)
Jürg Iseli [42] President of the Bernese Farmers' Union (BEBV)
Damien Humbert-Droz Plant cultivation representative
Markus Kretz [43] President of the Lucerne Farmers' Association (LBV)
Jakob Lütolf [44] President of the Central Switzerland Farmers' Union (ZBB) (Zug, Schwyz, Uri, Unterwalden (NW & OW), Lucerne)
Thomas RofflerPresident of the Bündner Farmers' Union (BBV), Swiss Alpine Farmers' Union (SAV)
Peter Seiler [45] Representing the mountain and alpine economy, the Board of the Swiss Association for Mountain Regions and the Swiss Alpine Association
Andreas Vögtli [46] Representative Solothurn/Basel Landschaft & Stadt, President of the Solothurn Farmers' Union (SOBV)
Fritz Waldvogel [47] Representative Appenzell (Outer & Inner Rhoden), Glarus, Schaffhausen, President of the Glarus Farmers' Union (BVGL)
Jeanette Zürcher-Egloff Vice President of the Swiss Farmers' and Rural Women's Association (SBLV)

Presidents since 1897

NameTerm of office
Johann Jenny 1897–1930
Franz Moser1930–1935
Ferdinand Porchet 1935–1949
Rudolf Reichling1949–1961
Joachim Weber 1961–1974
Peter Gerber 1974–1988
Jean Savary1988–1992
Marcel Sandoz 1992–2000
Hansjörg Walter 2000–2012
Markus Ritter2012–heute

Directors since 1897

NameTerm of office
Ernst Laur1897–1939
Oskar Howald 1939–1949
Ernst Jaggi 1949–1958
René Juri1958–1987
Melchior Ehrler 1987–2002
Jacques Bourgeois2002–2020
Martin Rufer2020-today

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaspar Villiger</span> 83rd President of the Swiss Confederation

Kaspar Villiger is a Swiss businessman, former tobacco manufacturer and politician. He served as a member of the Federal Council (Switzerland) since 1 February 1989 for The Liberals. Villiger served two terms as President of the Swiss Confederation in 1995 and again in 2002. He previously served on the Council of States (Switzerland) from 1987 to 1989 and on the National Council (Switzerland) from 1982 to 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luca Hänni</span> Swiss singer

Luca Hänni is a Swiss pop singer and television personality. He rose to fame in 2012 after winning the ninth season of Deutschland sucht den Superstar, the German version of the Idol franchise. He was the first non-German to do so and also the youngest ever winner of the show. Hänni's debut single, "Don't Think About Me", topped the singles charts in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. It was followed by the release of his debut album, My Name Is Luca (2012), which debuted atop the Austrian and Swiss Albums Charts and became a gold-seller in both countries. His second studio album, Living the Dream, released in 2013, became his second consecutive number-one album in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lukas Hartmann</span> Swiss novelist and childrens writer

Lukas Hartmann is a Swiss author.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernst Sieber</span> Swiss pastor (1927–2018)

Ernst Sieber was a Swiss pastor, social activist and politician who served one term as a member of the National Council (Switzerland) for the Evangelical People's Party. Sieber was one of the most popular and best known personalities associated with the Swiss Reformed Church. He was ordained in the Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton of Zürich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regula Rytz</span> Swiss historian and politician

Regula Rytz is a Swiss historian and politician of the Green Party of Switzerland. She was a member of the National Council from 2011 to 2022. From 2012 to 2016, she was the co-president of the Green Party of Switzerland. She was the party president from 2016 to 2020.

Jasmin Staiblin is a German manager. She was the CEO of the Swiss energy group Alpiq 2013-2018. She was also the CEO of ABB Switzerland from 2006 to 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabian Molina</span> Swiss politician

Fabian Molina is a Swiss politician who currently serves on the National Council (Switzerland) for the Social Democratic Party since 2018. He succeeded Tim Guldimann and became the youngest member of the National Council (Switzerland) ever to be elected aged 28. He previously served as President of the Young Socialists between 2014 and 2016 as well as on the Cantonal Council of Zürich from 2017 to 2018. Since 2019, he is co-president of Swissaid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UEFA Women's Euro 2025</span> 2025 edition of the UEFA Womens Football European Championship

The 2025 UEFA Women's Championship will be the 14th edition of the UEFA Women's Championship, the quadrennial international football championship organised by UEFA for the women's national teams of Europe. The tournament will be played in Switzerland from 2 to 27 July 2025. It will be the third edition since it was expanded to 16 teams. The tournament will return to its usual four-year cycle after the previous tournament was indirectly delayed to 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fenaco</span>

Fenaco is an agricultural cooperative federation in Switzerland, headquartered in Bern. Fenaco is an acronym of its French name fédération nationale des coopératives agricoles. Members of the federation are 165 agricultural cooperatives trading under the name Landi as well as some others. This makes Fenaco indirectly owned by the around 43,000 members of the Landi cooperatives, 22,000 of them being active farmers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deutscher Bauernverband</span>

The Deutscher Bauernverband) is the largest agricultural and forestry professional association in the Federal Republic of Germany. The DBV is the most significant interest group, lobbying and professional association of farmers in Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eva Herzog</span> Swiss politician

Eva Herzog is a Swiss politician who has represented Basel-Stadt in the Council of States since 2019 and has served as the President of the Council since 2023. She is a member of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamara Funiciello</span> Swiss politician

Tamara Funiciello is a Swiss politician who currently serves as member of the National Council (Switzerland) since 2019 for the Social Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacqueline Badran</span> Swiss businesswoman and politician

Jacqueline Badran also referred to as Jackie Badran is a Swiss businesswoman and politician. She currently serves as a member of the National Council (Switzerland) for the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland since 2011. She is primarily known for her campaigns for additional affordable housing and banning Airbnb. She also holds Australian citizenship.

Federal referendums were held in Switzerland on 7 March, 13 June, 26 September, and 28 November 2021. Swiss referendums take three forms: popular initiatives, which are citizen proposals to create a new law and require 100,000 valid signatures on a petition to get on the ballot; facultative or optional referendums, which are citizen proposals to approve or reject a piece of existing law and require 50,000 valid signatures on a petition to get on the ballot; and mandatory referendums, which are required to revise the constitution, join an international organisation or introduce emergency federal legislation for over a year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Élisabeth Baume-Schneider</span> Swiss politician (born 1963)

Élisabeth Baume-Schneider is a Swiss politician of the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (SP) and a current member of the Federal Council. She was elected on 7 December 2022, the first ever elected member from the Canton of Jura.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dadvan Yousuf</span> Kurdish entrepreneur

Dadvan Ismat Yousuf Yousuf is an Iraqi cryptocurrency investor and businessman whose early bitcoin investments made him the youngest self-made billionaire in Switzerland. Yousuf and his companies have been involved in a number of allegations.

The following is a summary of the 2022–23 season of competitive football in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marianne Binder-Keller</span> Swiss politician

Marianne Binder-Keller is a Swiss communications professional and politician who currently serves as member of the National Council (Switzerland) for The Centre since 2019. Binder-Keller currently is a member-elect of the Council of States (Switzerland) after being elected during the second ballot in the 2023 Swiss federal election which was held on 19 November 2023. She defeated Benjamin Giezendanner by roughly 5,000 votes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anna Giacometti</span>

Anna Giacometti is a Swiss politician and former foreign service officer. She currently serves as a member of the National Council for The Liberals since 2019. She previously served as the first mayor of Bregaglia from 2010 to 2020, who gained national attention after the Bondo landslide, where she was responsible for the first aid and evacuation of its citizens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Imark</span> Swiss businessman and politician

Christian Josia Maria Dieter Imark commonly known as Christian Imark is a Swiss businessman and politician. He currently serves on the National Council (Switzerland) for the Swiss People's Party since 2015. In 2001, Imark was elected as the youngest member into the Cantonal Council of Solothurn, aged 19. He served until 2015 when he was elected into National Council. He also served as the youngest president of the Cantonal Council in its history in 2012.

References

  1. ↑ "Swiss Farmers' Union (SFU). Ed.=Canton of Aargau Commercial Register Office. Retrieved=2023-11-12".
  2. ↑ Thomas Angeli, Otto Hostettler: Die Macht der Bauern. Die Landwirtschaftslobby hat ein Paralleluniversum errichtet. Mit durchschlagendem Erfolg: Sie erstickt jede Sparidee im Keim und kanalisiert die Finanzströme in ihre Richtung. In: Beobachter 20/2016 from September 30, 2016, pp. 16-25.
  3. ↑ Schnurrenberger, Marco (2019-08-28). "Successful lobbying - The farmers' association has a lot of influence - too much?". Swiss Radio and Television | srf.ch. Retrieved 2019-08-29.
  4. ↑ Renate Hodel, Jonas Ingold: «Am wichtigsten ist, dass die Schweizer Landwirtschaft weiterhin ein Wirtschaftsfaktor ist» . In: lid.ch. Agricultural Information Service, June 10, 2022, accessed September 26, 2022.
  5. ↑ Peter Moser: Schweizerischer Landfrauenverband . In: Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz. November 4, 2011, retrieved on January 31, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Agricultural Information Service (AIS)". histoirerurale.ch. Archives in Switzerland#Special archives|Archives for agricultural history. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  7. ↑ SFU - History (Retrieved March 16, 2021)
  8. ↑ "Swiss Farmers' Union". histoirerurale.ch. Archive for Agricultural History. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  9. ↑ Vereinsgeschichte Kleinbauern-Vereinigung. (PDF) In: kleinbauern.ch. 2018, retrieved on May 16, 2021.
  10. ↑ Mitgliedorganisationen des Schweizer Bauernverbandes . In: sbv-usp.ch. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  11. ↑ SFU – Organization (Retrieved 12 November 2023)
  12. ↑ Associated interests: Martin Rufer. in admin.ch
  13. ↑ Register der Zutrittsberechtigten. In: parlament.ch. Retrieved on May 5, 2021.
  14. ↑ Geschäftsstelle des Schweizer Bauernverbandes. In: sbv-usp.ch. Retrieved on May 5, 2021.
  15. ↑ Swiss Farmers' Union: Markus Ritter ist neuer Bauern-Präsident (Memento of the original from December 8, 2013, in the Internet Archive)
  16. ↑ Vanessa Mistric: Bauernlobby: Wer alles bei den «bäuerlichen Parlamentariern» mitmischt. In: blick.ch. December 9, 2023, retrieved on December 10, 2023.
  17. ↑ VSGP tritt aus dem Bauernverband aus In: gemuese.ch, February 23, 2018, retrieved on February 23, 2018.
  18. ↑ SRF 4 News: Nationalrat legt Agrar-Reform auf Eis . In: srf.ch. March 16, 2021, retrieved on April 16, 2021.
  19. ↑ Liz Horowitz: Agrarpolitik 22+ - Zu viel Ammoniak kostet Millionen – ein Ende ist nicht absehbar. In: srf.ch. December 7, 2020, retrieved on December 7, 2020.
  20. ↑ Catherine Boss: «Beim Tierschutz gibt es keine Schmerzgrenze» . Daily Gazette, July 4, 2019, accessed January 27, 2020.
  21. ↑ Peter Fritsche: Trächtige Kühe im Schlachthof - Strafe für Bauern soll Leiden der ungeborenen Kälber stoppen. SRF, November 29, 2019, retrieved on January 15, 2020.
  22. ↑ Pascal Tischhauser: SVP, FDP, Mitte und GLP: 1,2 Millionen für Abstimmungskampagnen. In: blick.ch. July 4, 2022, retrieved on July 12, 2022.
  23. ↑ Curdin Vinzenz: Ein abgekartetes Spiel - Warum die Bauernlobby in der Schweiz immer noch so mächtig ist. In: srf.ch. November 23, 2019, retrieved on November 23, 2019.
  24. ↑ «Die Landwirtschaft will ihren Beitrag leisten» – der SBV sagt Ja zum CO2-Gesetz In: bauernzeitung.ch, April 30, 2021, retrieved on April 30, 2021.
  25. ↑ StandPunkt von Markus Ritter, Präsident SBV, zur Ausbildung In: diegruene.ch, November 15, 2019, retrieved on January 27, 2020.
  26. ↑ Bauernverband: Trinkwasserinitiative schiesst am Ziel vorbei In: aargauerzeitung.ch, May 7, 2019, retrieved May 18, 2019.
  27. ↑ Angelika Hardegger: Agrarfilz, Fake-News und ein brisantes Gutachten: Der Kampf um die Trinkwasser-Initiative hat schon begonnen. In: nzz.ch , May 7, 2019, retrieved May 18, 2019.
  28. ↑ Georg Humbel: Agrarinitiativen – Die Millionenschlacht um die Zukunft der Landwirtschaft. Swiss Radio and Television (SRF), May 5, 2021, retrieved on May 5, 2021.
  29. ↑ Palm oil: Farmers' Union in favor of free trade agreement. In: schweizerbauer.ch, January 25, 2021, retrieved on January 26, 2021.
  30. ↑ Swiss Farmers' Union: Landwirtschaftskammer unterstützt Sistierung der Agrarpolitik 22+ . September 21, 2020, retrieved on October 8, 2020.
  31. ↑ Die Agrarlobby gerät in Bern stärker unter Druck. In: cash.ch. February 20, 2023, retrieved on February 20, 2023.
  32. ↑ Agrarlobby in Bern unter Druck. In: blick.ch. February 20, 2023, retrieved on February 20, 2023.
  33. ↑ Vorstand des Schweizer Bauernverbandes. In: sbv-usp.ch. Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  34. ↑ Eintrag . In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  35. ↑ Eintrag . In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  36. ↑ Eintrag . In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  37. ↑ Eintrag . In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  38. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  39. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  40. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  41. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  42. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  43. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  44. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  45. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  46. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
  47. ↑ Eintrag. In: Archiv für Agrargeschichte . Retrieved on December 6, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.