RECONVERSION
Among the most important missions of our Co&exister Association is support for the retraining of people whose professional practice is based on animal exploitation.
By offering moral, logistical and financial support, together we co-create a realistic and enjoyable reorientation project, from an ethical and ecological perspective.
Our association operates in Switzerland and France and offers tailor-made support, by setting up partnerships with specialists from other professions in order to work as close as possible to the needs of each situation. So the Co&xister association has co-created the Terres en transition collective to work in a multidisciplinary way, in collaboration with other organisations involved in sustainable agriculture, ecology and the animal cause.
Our association operates in Switzerland and France and offers tailor-made support, setting up partnerships with specialists in other fields in order to work as closely as possible to the needs of each situation.
In this way, the Co&xister Association has co-created the Terres en transition collective to work in a multi-disciplinary way, in collaboration with other organizations linked to sustainable agriculture, ecology and the animal cause.
Why reconvert
a. The ethical challenges linked to animal exploitation
Most animal exploitation professionals initially chose to embrace their profession out of love for animals and working the land. But very often, their ideal turned out to be disastrous in practice. Pushed to follow the path of efficiency and competitiveness, it becomes impossible for them to respect the fundamental needs of animals and offer them decent living conditions. Therefore, having animals killed by sending them to the slaughterhouse becomes a real nightmare that more and more farmers are no longer able to cope with.
Furthermore, the conscience of citizens being ever more open to the theme of animal welfare, practicing breeding / horse riding / animal experimentation / fish farming /… while guaranteeing ethical conditions has become antinomian.
Switzerland, thanks to the monumental work carried out by the association Hof Narr in German-speaking lands and ours in French-speaking Switzerland, lists more than 140 farmers who have chosen to leave animal exploitation to engage in a professional sector more in line with their conscience.
Our page « Media » will give you access to numerous articles and reports on this subject.
b. Economic and administrative pressure
In Switzerland as in France, the distress of farmers is a worrying social issue. In 2017, the show Temps Present (RTS) devoted a moving subject to them with the section “Farmers in distress". The film “In the name of the earth » also mentioned this major social problem.
The increase in administrative tasks on farms often makes life hellish for farmers who have little appreciation for office work. Strong competition on the prices of their products and the legal conditions concerning the keeping of animals induce a significant amount of pressure.
Whether for economic and/or ethical reasons, professional retraining provides real relief in the short and long term.
c. Ecological awareness
Environmentally, intensive breeding is no longer an option. The disasters of the intensive cultivation of fodder for so-called “cash animals”, the multiple studies of the IPCC, but also the recent modification of the agricultural orientation and future law in France, where the new climate targets issued by the Swiss Confederation in 2023, including a reduction in meat production and an increase in subsidies allocated to crop production, provide a new direction to follow in terms of food production.
Soil pollution from slurry, but also from fish farming ponds, contribute to reinforcing the observation that intensive farming is harmful to the environment.
Our resources and services
Psychological and social support
Construction of a new economic model
Public communication and social media
Connection with specialized partners
Public and media relations depending on the situation
Search for financial solutions to facilitate the transition
For any additional information and to answer your questions:
info@asso-coexister.ch
To overcome the problems of the current agricultural landscape, our association offers to support reconversion projects towards production methods that are more respectful of the life chain, combining humans, animals and the environment.