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June 13, 2021On Sunday at the polls for the Swiss called to the polls on various topics, from the ban on synthetic pesticides to the strengthening of the fight against terrorism.
The polling stations will close in the middle of the day because an overwhelming majority of voters have already voted by correspondence in recent weeks.
The results should be released this evening.
The pesticide campaign was particularly hot, with debates among farmers.
Especially since the country is home to one of the largest producers of plant protection products, the Basel group Syngenta, acquired in 2017 by the Chinese giant Chemchina.
One of the proposals on which the popular vote is being asked calls for a ban on these products within ten years. The import of food produced abroad that uses these pesticides would also be prohibited. Another initiative calls for a tightening of the environmental requirements that affect the payment of federal subsidies to farmers, rewarding those who do not use chemicals. Environmentalists and left-wing forces have supported both initiatives. The government has the opposite view and accuses them of wanting to "undermine the food sovereignty of the country". According to polls, both could be rejected. Among the rules to be voted on is also a law that includes various measures aimed at further reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.