FiBL Switzerland addresses numerous topics linked with organic agriculture, ranging from natural plant protection over the conservation of soil fertility, food quality, animal welfare, and alternative veterinary medicine till agricultural policy and markets.

Research at FiBL Switzerland is subdivided into four departments focussing on specific topics. In addition to these research units, there are also departments for professional education, extension service, and communication, as well as a department for international cooperation.

Our research for plant health

The Department for Plant Sciences commands longstanding expertise in fundamental and applied research and development (R&D) as well as the transfer of results to improve organic culture of fruits, grapevine, vegetables, and crops. Our main objectives are reliable yields and food quality, as well as promotion of biodiversity, pollinators, natural pest control and soil fertiliy, but also safeguarding the natural environment and natural resources. To achieve these objectives, we use prophylactic strategies focussing on technology, genetic diversity, cutting-edge plant protection, and pro-active support of functional biodiversity. Our R&D activities connect the central actors of the value-production chain, from the farmer till the marketing.

Our goals are:

• Secure productivity and quality in organic plant production.
• Participative selection and quality control of varieties, while safeguarding the diversity of crop plants.
• Develop and apply efficient methods for plant protection.
• Hypothesis-driven promotion of biodiversity to reduce pests.
• Promote biodiversity on organic farms and in the cultural landscape.
• Assessment of equipment and technologies for organic agriculture.

Our contribution to KliWiReSSE

Our modern infrastructure with laboratories, climate chambers, greenhouses, and equipment for testing plant protection preparations (including Outdoorscreening facilities) allow testing the varieties prioritised in frame of KliwiResse with biocontrol agents to improve resilience of those varieties to temperature stress.

In addition, we have been cultivating for 25 years PIWI varieties (resistant to fungal pests) at a very mild ecological footprint, using only two to five anti-fungal treatments per year. These varieties that are also successfully marketed by our winery, are also popular for their high organoleptic quality.

In this context, weh ave developed the project InnoPIWI entwickelt, assembling a collection oft he 40 best PIWI varieties and candidates that have recently emerged from European breeding activities. This collection is mapped for their quality, enologic and agronomic properties, and their resilience against diseases and pests, as well as for their response to extreme climatic stress. We have the option, to do macro- and micro-vinification of grapes coming from the KliWiReSSE partners as to evaluate the enologic and sensory properties. Moreover, we have established the methodology to test consumer preferences, to find out, which candidates deriving from the research in KliWiReSSE show the potential for consumer acceptance and, thus, for economic production.

What did we achieve

How did we proceed?
The rapid pace of climate change poses great challenges to the wine industry. On the one hand, popular classic varieties, but also some of the new resistant PiWi varieties are shifted to the rim of their tolerance. In the other hand it is difficult for winegrowers to decide which variety to plant for the future. This is getting even more pertinent by the long generation cycle of grapevines. Our contribution to the project is, therefore, focussing on approaches to enable winegrowers to constrain nitrogen accumulation, as well as sugar and alcohol content of the berries. Background is that consumers avoid wines with high alcohol content and shift to other beverages, such as beer, cider, or alco-pops. So far, we conduct field studies, but in the final stage of the project, we will move to climate chambers, because the more controlled conditions allow to get insight into the mechanisms.

Our toolbox
We investigate different varieties, such as Pinot noir, Sauvignon Soyhières, or Divico with respect to their physiological response, yield, and pathogen susceptibility upon treatment with FertiRoc, an aluminium silicate fortifier. A field study with Pinot noir using four treatments with FertiRoc during the heat season 2023 showed positive effects in several respect. We were able to see improved chlorophyll content and higher contents of macro- and microelements in leaves and berries. This led to a better wine quality with favourable acidities and amino acid content.

The positive result encouraged us to extend the study on the two PiWi varieties Sorten Sauvignon Soyhières and Divico. However, since the season 2024 was much cooler and wetter, a comparison will be difficult, and we plan a replication in the season 2025. In addition, we will use potted plants under controlled conditions to get insight into mechanisms of resilience based on physiological and molecular analysis.

How is heat tolerance generated?
We still do not know, how FertiRoc can improve the performance of grapevine. Therefore, we will use metabolite and transcript analysis during the next season to understand, which pathways are modulated by FertiRoc. Previous data indicate that the activity of carbon and nitrogen mobilising enzymes in the soil might be induced, which would improve the nutrition status. In addition, we think that FertiRoc, due the whitish coating on the leaves might reflect a part of the thermal radiation. A further physical effect might be a ion exchange activity in the soil, when the preparation is washed into the soil, which might reduce noxious compounds in the soil.