A city boy visits the farm: Look Chiara, this is where your milk comes from

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It is 6 a.m. at Chrumbacherhof near Seon in the canton of Aargau. It’s actually too early for Chiara, but she decided to work for the Trachsel-Häfliger family for a day. The order comes directly from farmer Peter Trachsel: “Milking first thing in the morning.”

“We have been meeting these requirements for a long time”

Chrumbacherhof is one of the companies that supplies organic milk for “retour aux sources” from Aldi Suisse. Its own brand, which has the highest organic standard in Switzerland, has been available since spring 2022 and pays particular attention to sustainability. “We have been meeting these requirements for a long time,” says farmer Trachsel. “We were looking for someone who could present our product accordingly.” And for Trachsel, this literally means “retour aux sources” – “return to the origin”.

The main goal of organic farmers “Retour aux Resources” is to keep the animals so healthy that no antibiotics are needed. If a calf or cow becomes ill, the animals are nursed back to health using alternative treatment methods. This also means that the farmers involved (35 suppliers in total in different parts of the country) must comply with particularly high animal welfare rules. To ensure health, hardy animal breeds that receive plenty of exercise are needed.

Roughage instead of soy

Other points mentioned by Trachsel are as follows: “Our calves stay on the farm for four months. And we don’t feed the cows any grains or soy. “We think we produce milk very naturally in this way.” As always in Switzerland, cows are fed roughage such as grass or hay instead of concentrates and soy. An animal’s milk production is accepted and not enhanced by concentrated feed. There is also compulsory pasture and free stall keeping.

Anyone who buys their milk, yoghurt or cheese from the “retour aux sources” at Aldi Suisse can even see if the product comes from the Chrumbacherhof in Seon. All organic products can be tracked collectively via the “retour aux Resources” website. This makes it transparent from which farms and processing companies a product comes from. To ensure that participating farms are rightfully included in the “retour aux Resources”, the sustainability of the farms is scientifically evaluated: During the annual control, companies provide data on 28 topics such as animal health, investments, occupational safety, biodiversity. , climate or Water conservation. This is evaluated by the Swiss Institute of Agroecology. The results can be viewed online under products.

Hours later, Peter Trachsel gives Chiara the final order: “In the evening the milking is done, the cows go out to pasture – and then it’s time for work.”

Source : Blick