Swiss finish with a bitter aftertaste: the quiet demise of rapeseed cultivation
The Swiss finish in the authorisation process has not stopped at domestic rapeseed cultivation. Strict approval procedures and the lack of approved plant protection products are leading to a decline in acreage and lower yields. Experts warn that without viable alternatives, Swiss rapeseed production is nearing its end. And organic rapeseed is practically non-existent.
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
In the coming weeks, rapeseed will also be in full bloom in this country. However, the yellow splendour is increasingly rare in Swiss fields as the area under rapeseed cultivation is decreasing. In 2024, it amounted to 24,357 ha – the lowest figure since 2019, according to statistics from the industry organisation Swiss Granum. For the current year, the industry association expects a further significant decline. According to estimates, only around 22,500 hectares are likely to be cultivated – which is about 11 per cent less than in 2023. In addition, yields on the remaining areas are continuously decreasing.
The figures clearly show that rapeseed cultivation in Switzerland is under pressure. The decline in acreage is not due to changes in Swiss consumer habits, quite the opposite: demand for domestic rapeseed products is higher than ever. In particular, rapeseed oil has been in high demand as a substitute for palm oil for some time now – but this demand can be met less and less, which is due to the increasingly difficult growing conditions for Swiss farmers. Rapeseed is a demanding crop that attracts numerous pests during its ten-month growing season. This makes crop protection all the more important – and it is precisely here that there is a gap, which is why more and more farmers are abandoning cultivation altogether. According to the Swiss Grain Producers Association (SGPV), around 50 per cent of producers who reduce their production between 2024 and 2025 cite the lack of available crop protection products as the reason.
Organic rapeseed is an impossibility
The following figure also illustrates how challenging rapeseed production is: only 1 per cent of the total harvest comes from organic farming. ‘There is practically no longer any organically produced rapeseed oil,’ according to the SGPV's latest press release. In other words, successful rapeseed cultivation is hardly possible without synthetic crop protection. Hansueli Dierauer from the FiBL already saw several possible reasons for the major damage caused by the stem weevil in organic rapeseed cultivation in 2021: milder winters, an ever earlier arrival of the stem weevil and the ban on neonicotinoids in conventional cultivation. The latter can be explained by the fact that farmers who grow conventionally grown rapeseed also protect neighbouring organic parcels with their crop protection – comparable to people who get vaccinated and thus reduce the risk of infection from infectious diseases, even for those who are not vaccinated.
Unfortunately, however, farmers have fewer and fewer pesticides at their disposal: following the ban on neonicotinoids a few years ago, producers are pinning their hopes on cyantraniliprole, which could also be considered an interesting alternative from an environmental policy perspective. However, the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO) has rejected a corresponding application, even though this active ingredient is approved in the EU.
Rape seed is important for bee colonies
This ‘Swiss finish’ in the authorisation process could further accelerate the creeping death of rapeseed cultivation in Switzerland – which seems almost paradoxical given the high domestic demand. In the above-mentioned press release, the SGPV asks: ‘Isn't it ironic that, as a consequence, rapeseed oil has to be imported – and from countries where exactly these (and even stronger) pesticides are allowed and used?’
For many bee colonies in Switzerland, it is more than just ironic – it is a tragedy. Canola is an important food source for honeybees, which is why beekeepers are also clearly feeling the effects of the decline in cultivation. Meanwhile, SGPV director Pierre-Yves Perrin is hoping that the FSVO will soon relax its guidelines. In view of the FSVO's decisions to date, it is likely to remain a matter of hope. And so it is not only the bees that will increasingly have to search for the bright yellow fields, but also Swiss consumers for regionally produced rapeseed oil on the shelves of large retailers – all in all, a less than sustainable situation.
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