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An initiative for a general ban on pesticides in agricultural production in Switzerland will be put to the vote on 13 June 2021. The Association of Independent Winegrowers and Vintners, as the initiator, sees good prospects of success for this. The application was submitted to the federal administration in May 2018 after those responsible had collected around 127,000 signatures. To succeed, majorities are needed in the total number of votes in Switzerland as well as in the 25 cantons.
The initiators are optimistic: around 50 percent of Swiss farmers already do almost completely without synthetic pesticides. 7,000 are certified organic, others carry the "Integrated Protection" label. Ten to 15 percent of Swiss vineyards are farmed organically, and the size of the area is steadily increasing.
However, several chambers of agriculture, the Swiss Winegrowers' Association, the Association for the Development of Sustainable Viticulture and several dozen other associations have launched a campaign to call on the Swiss to say "no".
(uka / Photo: Wikipedia - I. Vheritier)