The potato suffers hard the hot weather in recent days. In the canton of Vaud, the situation becomes critical, worries Sébastien Pasche, vice-president of the Swiss Union of Potato Producers and Farmer. If the rain does not point to its nose soon, the loss could be substantial.
“The potato no longer grows beyond 27 degrees. And if you accumulate this with the fact that it lacks water, in this case, it no longer grows,” laments Sébastien Pasche, farmer in the big vaud.
Indeed, the potato is much more fragile than it seems. It needs freshness and water, but does not support hot weather. In the canton of Vaud, which has not received a drop of rain in recent weeks, except for hail, drought may soon have its skin.
He remains “two and a half weeks”, explains Sébastien Pasche, to hope that a little rain comes to his rescue. Without that, this farmer could lose up to half his harvest.
Unprofitable for small producers
Climate change and diseases make the cultivation of this tuber more and more difficult, especially for small producers.
In the canton of Friborg, their number increased from 360 to 276 in ten years. Some producers have an irrigation system, but they are in the minority (less than 15%).
One of the solutions consists in developing watering: “There is one or two irrigation projects in the Broye which are emerging with the help of the Confederation and the Cantons”, details Sébastien Pasche. A paradoxical situation, because it is a question of irrigating more cultures while consuming less water.
Radio subject: Virginie Langerock
Adaptation web: Doreen Enssle
