Meet the new Swiss farmer

On one hand, more and more farmers, in Western Europe at least, are really suffering and cannot find a sustainable business model that allows them to simply have a decent life. Some have to go on the street demanding support in the form of subsidies and legitimately complaining about complicated supply chains that gobble up profit and leave them scrambling to make ends meet.

On the other hand, headlines are shouting about “sustainability,” “bio” and “farm to table.”

How can this be?

I would like to share with you an eye-opener that I had over the past year or so on my journey through “Zentralschweiz,” the founding heart of Switzerland. What did I find there, you ask?

The Swiss farmer 2.0!

From the clean-cut young farmer Philipp Hotz running the Hof-Märcht in its 13th generation to “hippie-style” Bruno Muff at the Haldihof, their farms may seem romantically old-fashioned, but they certainly are not. They represent a new generation of farmers in Switzerland that is successfully changing the way things are being done. Here are some of their solution-oriented standout points:

• A combination of events, gastronomy, retail and agriculture
• Customer contact and elimination of middlemen by creating on-site retail as well as on-line shops (Haldihof, by the way, does 80% of its sales online and no, it does not have an e-commerce department)
• Networking and collaboration
• Authenticity, sustainability and creativity
• “Be there” and focus on what they do best

So, where does the corporate hospitality world stand?

Well, despite CSR programs and some rooftop herb gardens, that South African Granny Smith apple somehow still finds its way on to every fruit platter…

I am curious to know your opinion. Beyond “hotel mercuriales” or “mandatory referenced suppliers,” don’t our hotels have a duty to explore any innovative way to collaborate more closely and directly with this new generation of farmers?

Stéphane Bellon, founder, Studionomie, Geneva

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