Well done, Gut Rheinau!

In the far north of the canton of Zurich, around seven kilometers downstream from the Rhine Falls, the Rhine embraces the landscape with an extra round - because it likes it so much. The co-creators of this landscape are the operators of the Rheinau estate.

What's next for Swiss agriculture? With biodiversity? With the approximately 2,200 tons of pesticides that are applied to our fields every year? And what about the food produced from it, which should mean a lot to us? "Agriculture is always a major intervention in nature," says Moritz Ehrismann, farm manager at the Rheinau estate. "But we try to produce here in such a way that nature doesn't have to be protected from us."
In concrete terms, this means more diversity in and around the fields instead of monoculture and chemical mace. Around 10% of the 121 hectares of the Rheinau estate are reserved exclusively for insects, birds and microorganisms as valuable habitats. Hedges, islands, fallow land and meadows create a network of "undisturbed" nature between the fields. This ensures a stable ecosystem and reduces the pressure of pests on crops.

The biggest challenge for the operators of such diverse, pesticide-free and restrained agriculture is the price. Even the current product prices at Gut Rheinau only just cover the costs of production - and sometimes not even that. So the crucial question is: what is intact nature, healthy food, fair wages and respectful treatment of people, animals and plants really worth to us?

The following products and even more of the Rheinau estate you will find in our store.