Bio Suisse has presented the most important figures on biological development in Switzerland at its annual media conference. In 2022, sales fell in the entire food market. However, organic managed to rise and now has a market share of 11.2 percent. Sales fell slightly to 3.8 billion Swiss francs. Currently, about 7,560 companies are certified organic. With the new label “Bio Cuisine”, Bio Suisse is now also meeting a high demand for organic products in the hospitality industry. In 2022, Swiss consumers often bought organic products, despite the rising cost of living and the tempered mood caused by the energy crisis and Russia’s war in Ukraine. The market share was 11.2 percent in 2022 (2021: 10.9%). This corresponds to a volume of 3.8 billion Swiss francs (2021: 4 billion Swiss francs). Bio Suisse explains the drop in sales with the lack of the Corona-related special effects, which caused sales to increase sharply. In 2019, before Corona, sales amounted to 3.2 billion Swiss francs. With an average annual growth of 200 million Swiss francs, organic sales follow the positive long-term trend. “Organic continues to grow steadily,” reports Urs Brändli, Chairman of Bio Suisse, delighted. At 439 francs, per capita consumption was slightly below the amount in 2020. The development in the retail channels is uneven. While the organic market leader Coop recorded a slight decline (-3.6%), Migros was able to continue its organic growth moderately (+0.9%). The biggest changes occurred in the organic specialty trade (-14.5%) and direct marketing (-16.5%). Both rising and falling growth rates were also realized at the discounters. But here, too, sales in all trade channels were above the level of 2019. Nevertheless, the increasing importance of retail for the successful development of organic is confirmed. Without the strong partnerships that have existed for many years with Coop, and now also Migros, organic would not be at the current level in Switzerland. Currently, around 7,560 farms operate according to Bio Suisse standards, cultivating 187,090 hectares of agricultural land (+10,030 hectares compared to 2022). Most of the new conversions come from the cantons of Bern (+35 organic farms), Zurich (+28) and Vaud (+23). The canton of Graubünden has the undisputed largest share of organic farms with 64.3 percent. Bern, with a total of 1,381 companies, remains the Canton with the most organic companies. Throughout Switzerland, 17.3 percent of companies carry the Bio Suisse certificate (+0.5 percent). With a net increase of 57 additional companies, growth was clearly above last year’s level (+23). For the first time in several years, Bio Suisse is actively looking for producers interested in converting to organic farming. Arable crops are especially in demand. “We have planned an arable farming offensive and are looking for 15,000 additional hectares of arable land that can be converted to organic by 2027. This corresponds to around 500 new organic companies in the next 5 years,” said Balz Strasser, CEO of Bio Suisse.
