Six ideas for an agricultural revolution

Agriculture is facing threats of soil erosion, insect extinctions, and climate change effects such as drought. A recent article in the Swiss magazine Sonntags Blick proposes an agricultural revolution is needed to counter these threats and provide food security for a growing Swiss population. Switzerland currently imports more food than it exports and does not have enough farmland to nourish the growing population. Six ideas to help in such a revolution were introduced, including permaculture, plant gene editing, mixed cropping systems, changing consumer habits, aquaponics, and smart farming.

ETH Zurich Prof. Christain Schöb was highlighted along with the idea of mixed cropping systems. His research on intercropping of plant species has found that mixed cultures of grasses are more productive, more stable and healthy in the long term, and require less pesticides than monocultures. For example, field trials show that intercropping of cereal grains and lupins result in reciprocal increase in yields.

Also, innovations in Smart Farming from the group of Prof. Achim Walter were discussed. Robots taking to the fields to measure moisture and check for disease- these farm hands of the future can provide measurements that save labor and water and decrease pesticide use, while increasing yields. Walter’s team has already produced prototypes of robots that can perform such “spot farming.”

Read the full article Sechs Ideen für eine Agrarrevolution (in German) in Sonntags Blick external page here