Swiss voters on September 25 rejected a proposal to ban factory farming in a referendum on whether the wealthy country’s strict animal welfare laws need to be tightened yet further.
Key points
- The government’s VoteInfo App showed a provisional result of 62.86% of votes against the proposal, put to a referendum under the Swiss system of direct democracy, to make protecting the dignity of farm animals such as cattle, chickens and pigs a constitutional requirement.
What are Factory farms?
- Factory farms, also known as concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), are a modern industrial method of raising farmed animals, who are collectively known in industry parlance as livestock.
- Basically, factory farming is a form of intensive agriculture designed to maximize profits using as few resources as possible.
- On factory farms, large numbers of animals are confined in small spaces, which often means keeping animals indoors for the duration of their lives.
- Factory farming is an increasingly common way to raise animals for food, focusing on species such as cows, pigs, chickens, and fish.
- CAFOs can also be used to farm animals for non-food purposes, such as minks farmed intensively for their fur.
- On factory farms, animals are not given any choice about how to live their lives. They’re raised to grow quickly so that they can be turned into products as swiftly as possible.
Switzerland direct democracy
- Direct democracy is a legal framework that enables all Swiss citizens over the age of 18 to vote on how the country is run.
- The fundamental principle of direct democracy is that all citizens take part in decision-making and there’s a strong respect for minorities.
- Popular votes can be held up to four times a year.
- The Federal Council decides a couple of months in advance which proposals will be voted on and releases the dates of the votes even earlier.
- There are three instruments of direct democracy, all types of referendum: mandatory, popular initiative and optional.
- A vote must be held on any amendment to the constitution resulting in a mandatory referendum. A double majority, meaning the consent of a majority of the people and of the cantons is required to amend the country’s constitution.
- Citizens can launch a popular initiative to demand a change to the constitution. Any Swiss citizen who is eligible to vote can sign a popular initiative and a group of at least seven citizens (the initiative committee) can launch their own popular initiative. Before a vote is held on a popular initiative, the initiative committee must collect 100,000 valid signatures in favour of the proposal within a period of 18 months.
- The Federal Council and Parliament will recommend whether the proposal should be accepted or rejected.
- For the proposal to be accepted a double majority is needed. If it is accepted, new legislation or an amendment to existing legislation is normally required to implement the new constitutional provision.
