16


SWITZERLAND Double celebration in Switzer


Swiss mushroom growing enjoys a long, rich history. The Verband Schweizer Pilzproduzenten (VSP) recently celebrated its 75th anniversary. Time to crack open the champagne at a celebration held at Zürcher Champig- nonskulturen, that happened to be celebrating its 60th anniversary. By Thei Staaks


Roland Vonarburg during his speech.


Earning a living was difficult too in Switzerland back in the days of the depression. High school teacher Ernst Haberstaat gathered together a group of like-minded mushroom lovers and growers in Switzerland. At the time, eating mushrooms was still a preserve of the elite classes. By increasing the production this situation could change, making mushrooms more readily availa- ble for the average person in the street in Switzerland. A new platform had to be created, with the aim of amas- sing expertise about growing and producing spawn and compost cooperatively. This plan was received with enthusiasm and 24 of the 27 invited growers actively supported Haberstaat’s plan. 20 February 1938 saw the date of the establishment of the VSP. Haberstaat was elected as the first president and he is still considered to be the founding father of the Swiss mushroom industry. In reflection, mushroom growing here, similar to many other countries, has a turbulent history, and has had to overcome many obstacles along the way. For example, before and during World War II horse manure was very hard to come by; the 1960s were characterised by growing competition from cheap, imported preserved


mushrooms; the 1970s saw sharp drops in prices due to over production and today the market is battling the ever-more popular German discounters, that mainly try to sell cheaper, Polish mushrooms. This is particularly irksome for the growers and the secretary of the VSP Fritz Burkhalter. “We are happy to welcome the Polish here in Switzerland for a holiday, but could they please leave their mushrooms at home”, he says with a wry sense of humour. Many Swiss mushroom growers did not survive the stormy past. However, the ones left over have imple- mented the latest technical advances, such as com- puter controlled climate systems, at their companies, and they are continually introducing energy saving innovations, as well as improving labour conditions and paying attention to their impact on the environ- ment. And regional produce is rightly praised and well promoted. The current president of the VSP, Roland Vonarburg, proudly states that more than 80% of the market share of mushrooms is grown in Switzerland.


Martin en Hans Zürcher show visitors around on the farm.


Zürcher Champignonskulturen One of the Swiss mushroom growing farms that has withstood the ravages of time to become a strong survivor is Zürcher Champignonskulturen. The farm in Belp, close to Bern airport, was founded in 1953 by the parents of the current owners, Hans and Martin Zürcher. Over the years, Zürcher senior banished all the hard, manual work that was necessary in the early days by modernising the company. In 1995 the company was taken over by his sons, and has subsequently seen considerable expansion. At present more than 800 tons of fresh mushrooms are produced per year, both white and chestnut mushrooms. A typical saying of the brothers – ‘We have to keep our customers satisfied and that sometimes means making concessions to the number of kilos per square metre’- perfectly illustrates the high value they attach to harvesting top quality mushrooms. The modern indoor composting unit consists of a phase 1 section in bunkers, and a phase 2 and 3 facility in tunnels. The highly productive compost is made of horse manure, gypsum and chicken slurry. Total annual production is around 7000 tons of phase 3. Part of this compost is destined for the Zürcher farm, but Wauwiler Champignons in Wauwil and Stadler Champignons in


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44