Will olives soon grow in Switzerland?

The Swiss potato is struggling. Last year was too hot for it, while this year was too wet. "We’ve been aware that it’s getting warmer for some time now," says Annelie Holzkämper from the Agroscope federal research centre. Drought and heavy rainfall are also becoming more common. "More frequent extreme conditions in particular can put domestic crops under pressure," the agricultural expert explains.

That’s why farms and research centres have started looking for more resilient crops for a number of years - often from countries further south. Does this mean that olive and lemon trees could soon be planted in Switzerland? Holzkämper smiles. "Probably not, but viticulturists are adding more and more heat-loving varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon."

There's also a lot of experimenting. So far, it's unclear which types will prevail. We still need more experience, Holzkämper explains. "We first have to wait and see if there’s actually any real demand." We present a few examples of exotic crops that are already being grown in Switzerland today and may be seen there more often in the future.

Almonds

"We live in the driest part of Switzerland," farmer Stefan Germann says. When he moved to the Valais municipality of Stalden, that meant looking for a crop which didn’t need much water. "Contrary to what people think, almond trees can survive for a very long time without an artificial water supplies."

Today he has more than 100 almond trees. He doesn’t know exactly how many almonds he produces. That’s because the harvests vary from one year to the next. "The weather has become extremely unpredictable. Late frost in particular can damage the flowers and fruit," Germann says.

Andreas Naef from Agroscope has come to the same conclusion. The research centre has been testing 26 types of almond since 2021. Some varieties hardly produced anything at all because of frost. The almonds sometimes also suffered from fungal infestation. "We therefore assume that they will be used less extensively in Switzerland than originally envisaged to replace standard cherry trees."

Chickpeas

René Ritter and Andreas Gass were euphoric in 2018, when they introduced a new crop at their Leimenhof farm in the canton of Basel Land. "At the time, there was strong demand for vegetable-based proteins, and chickpeas were very fashionable." Like some other farmers and Agroscope, they jumped on the bandwagon.

Four years on, Ritter’s conclusion is rather sobering: "The crop failed completely in three out of the last four years. It was too wet twice and we had to contend with pest infestation another year." The results for lentils, which the two farmers have also been producing for five years, are more encouraging. "They seem to be more resistant to damp conditions and other climatic fluctuations."

Nevertheless, they aren’t planning to give up on chickpeas just yet. Ritter is convinced that he can overcome his cultivation difficulties once he has more experience and finds the right varieties. "The only question is whether people will actually buy our chickpeas, because they’re more expensive than imported ones."

Kiwis

When we think of exotic crops, fruits like pineapples and kiwis immediately spring to mind. Whereas pineapples can't (yet) be found in Switzerland, kiwis have been grown around Lake Geneva for about 50 years. "Strictly speaking, kiwis aren’t exotic fruits, because they originally come from China," says Matthias Faeh from Kiwi Suisse in Allemann in the canton of Vaud. Faeh grows 300 tonnes of kiwis a year, making him Switzerland’s largest producer of what were originally called Chinese gooseberries.

A mild climate due to the proximity of the lake enabled them to be grown locally. "Kiwis don’t tolerate the cold and take a long time to ripen." Rising temperatures and an early spring would therefore be beneficial.

Then again, sudden cold snaps or wet periods – which are occurring ever more frequently – would prove harmful. "That’s why I don’t think kiwis will be grown on a large scale in Switzerland anytime soon."

Mountain cereals

In Switzerland, wheat is mainly grown in lowland areas. Even so, it’s also found elsewhere, as the example of the Alpsteinkorn association shows. "In recent years, we’ve grown wheat and other cereals in the region around the Alpstein Alps," says Lena Geiger from Alpsteinkorn.

The association conducted its trials in close cooperation with Agroscope and the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL). To promote innovative ideas in mountainous regions, the Migros Economic Policy division also provides financial support for the initiative.

"It turns out that most lowland varieties aren’t suitable for mountainous regions. That’s why new varieties have to be tested," Geiger explains.

Upland farming could play a more significant role in the future, when heat and dry periods may create worse growing conditions in lower lying regions. "This would provide us with an alternative in future if harvests are lost in lowland areas," Geiger says.

Sorghum

Few people are familiar with this African sweet grass. However, the federal centre for excellence believes it has a tremendous potential: "Sorghum tolerates drought better than corn and is less sensitive to pests," says Tiziana Vonlanthen from Agroscope.

Sorghum is now being grown on 391 hectares of land across Switzerland. Ninety percent of this is used for animal feed. However, it can also be used for human consumption. After all, as Vonlanthen points out, the plant is a staple food in many African countries. "Sorghum can be used in things like flat bread, biscuits, drinks and gluten-free pasta."

But more experience must be gained first. "Crop breeding methods should enable the potential yield to be optimised and unsuitable characteristics to be eliminated so that sorghum can be adapted (even more) successfully to domestic needs."

Chia seeds

In central Europe, chia doesn't bloom until late autumn. That's why the seeds can't mature in Switzerland before the winter. Nevertheless, that's precisely what Christoph Gämperli tried ten years ago. In spring, he scattered several million chia seeds over his field in Flawil in the canton of St. Gallen.

Only one plant flowered in July rather than in the autumn. "When its seeds also flowered this early the following year, I knew that we had found a plant suitable for growing in Switzerland," says Gämperli from the St. Gallische Saatzucht cooperative.

Together with some other farmers in the region, he now supplies packaging-free shops and organic customers. They would like to expand the production of Swiss chia. However, Gämperli bemoans the lack of demand because a lot of chia is still being imported, despite the fact that it also grows well in Switzerland. "The plants are very resilient to heat and drought. Their dense leaves also help prevent the ground from drying out."