Swiss government to cut farming subsidies – but less than planned
Under government proposals released on Wednesday, Swiss farmers are to get some CHF13.8 billion ($15.6 billion) in state funding between 2026 and 2029. This would be CHF230 million or 1.6% less than currently.
Original goverment plans had proposed reducing the funding by a total of 2.5% compared to the period from 2022 to 2025. It is now proposing more aid to help agriculture adapt to climate-related challenges.
On Wednesday, the Federal Council announced that the increase in funding should however be offset by cuts to other areas of state agricultural spending – a prospect which was rejected by a majority of respondents during the consultation procedure.
+ Read more: Swiss agriculture as a pesticide-free pioneer
Nevertheless, the government said, due to tight federal finances it intends to keep to an offsetting plan. The agricultural sector must also do its part in reducing the burden on public finances by saving around CHF2 billion, it wrote.
Adapted from German by DeepL/dkk/dos
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