Demand for Swiss Christmas trees continues to rise
Published: Wednesday, Dec 4th 2024, 12:10
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The Christmas season is just around the corner and many Swiss living rooms cannot do without a Christmas tree. Trees from Swiss forests are becoming increasingly popular and the trees are being put up earlier and earlier.
The demand for Swiss Christmas trees is steadily increasing, as has been observed in recent years. Wholesalers in particular are increasingly asking for domestic trees, says Philipp Gut, Managing Director of IG Suisse Christbaum, in an interview with the news agency AWP.
In some cases, Swiss producers are even finding it difficult to meet demand. "We hope that the trend towards more Swiss trees will continue," Gut continues.
However, the association does not want to encourage producers to grow much more now. Demand can change quickly and, given the sluggishness of the business, it is better to be cautious, as it takes seven to ten years for a Christmas tree to grow to the required size.
Coop is the only wholesaler to sell only Swiss trees, according to an inquiry. However, trees from foreign production can be found at the Coop subsidiary Jumbo. Overall, the proportion of domestic trees in the Coop Group is around two thirds, says a spokesperson. According to Migros, the proportion of Swiss trees is expected to be 90 percent, as in previous years.
Domestic trees accounted for around two thirds of Landi's sales in the previous year. The proportion has increased significantly in recent years. Until a few years ago, the ratio was 1:1. "In order to meet the high demand for Christmas trees and to satisfy the different price requirements, we also stock Christmas trees from Denmark," said the cooperative, which is owned by Swiss farmers, explaining the product mix.
As in previous years, Aldi is relying purely on imported trees. Lidl will once again not be selling any Christmas trees.
Trees are put up earlier
"We have been observing the trend of Christmas trees being put up earlier and earlier for some time," Gut continued. As a result, there is already good demand early in December.
According to Gut, earlier installation is generally not a problem. A Nordmann fir can last a good three to four weeks indoors if it is watered regularly. The tree can therefore be brought into the home around December 10 or 15. Then you can enjoy it for longer.
Growing demand for potted trees
More and more consumers are opting for a Christmas tree in a pot. Both Landi and Coop report an increase in demand. Christmas trees that are still alive are placed in a plant pot in the home. Depending on the situation, they can then be planted in the garden or returned as a "loan tree". However, this is still a niche market, says Gut.
Many consumers consider potted plants to be more sustainable, but this is not always the case. Quite a few trees do not survive transplanting. Staying in a warm apartment means a lot of stress for the trees, as they are actually in hibernation. A tree in a pot is therefore only more sustainable if it survives, wrote the German magazine Ökotest last year.
In addition, the pot represents an additional weight that should not be neglected during transportation, which even occurs several times when returning borrowed trees. The classic "dead" trees, on the other hand, are only transported once and then usually recycled locally and centrally.
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