Switzerland: Uniterre warns against Syngenta’s proposal to abandon organic farming

Uniterre, a Swiss member of La Via Campesina, is calling for the promotion of food sovereignty and not to give in to the production of more food at the expense of food quality and sustainability, following the call of Syngenta’s boss to abandon organic farming in order to increase agricultural productivity. Here is their press release.

Lausanne, May 11, 2022 – In these uncertain times, when the feeling of insecurity seems to grow day by day, the ancestral fear of being hungry resurfaces in the depths of our reptilian brains, and forces us to ask ourselves what attitude to adopt. The boss of Syngenta comes out of the woodwork with a ready-made answer: we must abandon organic production in order to increase yields! But let’s not be naïve, it is mainly his own profits that he hopes to increase!

Industrial agriculture, with large structures and monocultures, is in fact particularly harmful to the climate and to biodiversity. Moreover, by stopping organic agriculture, as proposed by Syngenta, agriculture would further alienate civil society by compromising :

  • the quality of our drinking water,
  • the quality of our land,
  • biodiversity,
  • climate protection,
  • public health

If we stop organic, we may be producing more foodstuff, but we won’t be producing food safety. And we will – above all! – increase the turnover and profits of Syngenta and the whole agrochemical industry.

The real solutions to the problem of food shortage lie elsewhere, and moreover they are much less expensive:

  • Stop wasting food, all along the production chain,
  • Stop using food to produce fuel,
  • Do not forage for food that can feed humans,
  • Preserve our land from erosion, desertification and speculation,
  • Promote smaller structures, diversified by agroforestry and permaculture, for more resilience and autonomy,
  • Get agriculture out of free trade agreements and the WTO,
  • In short, to promote food sovereignty!

For more visit Uniterre website.