Crop failures and higher interest rates Farmers earned less in 2023
Despite higher milk prices and larger livestock numbers, farms are recording falling wages. An overview of the income situation in Swiss agriculture.
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- 79,700 francs per farm is the average income in Swiss agriculture.
- The average salary per full-time employee is 54,800 francs.
- In the valley region, the income is CHF 71,700, in the mountain region only CHF 39,100.
In 2023, the average income of an agricultural business in Switzerland amounted to CHF 79,700. This corresponds to a slight increase of 0.1 percent compared to the previous year, as the Swiss Federal Competence Center for Agricultural Research Agroscope writes in a press release.
Despite this increase, farmers' incomes are still well below the median wage in Switzerland, which is CHF 84,500. On average, 1.35 family members work per farm, which lowers the income per full-time employee to 54,800 francs - a decrease of 2.4 percent compared to the previous year. Agroscope attributes this decline to increased interest payments.
Wages for auxiliary staff are even lower. According to the salary guidelines of the Swiss Farmers' Association, temporary employees and auxiliary staff earn around 41,000 francs. Harvest yields were affected by unfavorable weather conditions such as below-average sunshine duration and above-average precipitation in spring.
Large regional differences
June also suffered from a lack of precipitation, while heatwaves in July and August led to further crop failures. Viticulture, on the other hand, benefited from the warm and dry summer months, and higher yields were also achieved in livestock farming. Higher milk prices and larger livestock numbers had a positive impact, although demand for beef declined.
In addition, the regional differences are significant: in the valley region, income per family worker is CHF 71,700, while in the hill region it is CHF 48,500 and in the mountain region only CHF 39,100. This income includes agricultural activities and related work such as biogas production and agrotourism, but not non-agricultural activities (e.g. employment in a craft business). The latter rose by 5.5 percent to CHF 37,000 per household, which increased total farm income by 1.5 percent to CHF 112,200.
