What Happened to Farmy: Switzerland's Online Farm-Direct Pioneer Goes Bankrupt
Farmy AG + Pico Lebensmittel AG declared bankruptcy on 9 May 2026. ~100 employees losing jobs; ~1'850 crowdinvestors lose CHF 4.2M; ~1'200 Swiss producers lose their channel. Founded 2014, peak CHF 32M revenue in 2021, acquired by Pico for CHF 100'000 in Jan 2025. Chairman Dominique Locher (ex-LeShop CEO) was elected to SBB board on 29 April 2026 — 10 days before the filing. Migros was NOT an investor (correction from public confusion). Full timeline, why it collapsed, and the alternatives map.
Is Farmy still operating? No. Farmy AG and its parent company Pico Lebensmittel AG declared bankruptcy on 9 May 2026. The online shop is offline, operations have ceased, and approximately 100 employees are losing their jobs. The company had operated since 2014. Bankruptcy proceedings are under way at the Konkursamt Zürich.
Sources checked: May 2026. Inside Paradeplatz (9 May 2026 break); SRF, 20 Minuten, Blick, Watson (9-10 May 2026 confirmations); Schweizer Bauer, NZZ, kleinreport.ch, foodaktuell.ch, mobilityblog.ch, cash.ch on the timeline and the Locher / SBB sequence; Exciting Commerce, Konsider, Handelszeitung on the crowdfunding numbers; SBB news on Locher election (Bundesrat approval 13 March 2026, AGM vote 29 April 2026). Prices and alternative-service status verified May 2026.
Rappn is the only neutral grocery price comparison app in Switzerland, with no commercial agreements with any retailer.
The headline facts
On Saturday 9 May 2026, the news portal Inside Paradeplatz reported that Farmy AG and Pico Lebensmittel AG had filed for bankruptcy. By Sunday afternoon, SRF, 20 Minuten, Blick and Watson had confirmed the story. The Farmy website went offline within hours, replaced by a short farewell from the company's board: "We have ceased operations."
The board's official statement cited "economic reasons" and stated that "the restructuring measures undertaken did not lead to the desired sustainable recovery of Farmy." Both Farmy AG and its parent Pico Lebensmittel AG are now in formal bankruptcy proceedings.
About 100 employees are expected to lose their jobs. Approximately 1'850 small crowdfunding investors who participated in Farmy's 2022 to 2023 share offering have lost essentially all of their investment, a total of roughly CHF 4.2 million. Approximately 1'200 Swiss farmers, dairies and bakeries who used Farmy as a sales channel must now find alternative distribution. The Konkursamt Zürich will manage the proceedings.
The 12-year timeline
2014. Farmy is founded in Zurich by Roman Hartmann and Tobias Schubert as an online marketplace for Swiss farmers, bakers and small producers with same-day farm-to-door delivery.
2017. Farmy raises CHF 5 million in a financing round.
2019 to 2020. Revenue is CHF 9.5 million in 2019. The pandemic hits and Farmy is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Swiss online-grocery surge. Revenue grows 170% to CHF 26 million in 2020. Headcount reaches a peak of approximately 220 employees.
2021. Revenue grows another 23% to approximately CHF 32 million, the company's all-time peak. Farmy is the number-three online grocer in Switzerland, behind Migros Online (formerly LeShop) and Coop.ch.
2022 to early 2023. Farmy launches a crowdfunding campaign. Between October 2022 and 31 January 2023, the campaign raises CHF 6.5 million in total, with approximately CHF 4.2 million coming from roughly 1'850 small crowdinvestors. The remaining ~CHF 2 million comes from existing shareholders. Company valuation at the time: CHF 65 to 70 million. Revenue for 2022 lands at CHF 31 million.
2023. Farmy raises a further CHF 10.5 million from existing and new investors in summer 2023. Per NZZ reporting, the valuation in this round is reduced by close to 80% from the crowdfunding peak.
2024. Restructuring begins. The board hires Dominique Locher as chairman. Operational changes follow.
Mid-January 2025. Farmy merges with Pico Lebensmittel, whose CEO Thomas Zimmermann had previously been Farmy's chief buyer. The acquisition price: a symbolic CHF 100'000. All Farmy crowdfunding investors are informed they will lose their stake.
June 2025. The Western Switzerland warehouse in Ecublens VD closes; 29 employees lose their jobs. Farmy publicly cites a 22% revenue decline.
9 May 2026. Sixteen months after the Pico merger, both Farmy AG and Pico Lebensmittel AG file for bankruptcy.
Why Farmy collapsed
Three structural factors combined.
First, the post-pandemic reset. Swiss online grocery sales never returned to 2020-2021 peak levels. CEO Thomas Zimmermann (post-merger) told Blick.ch that order volume "never recovered after the Corona boom, and the most recent decline has been even steeper."
Second, the premium-pricing structure. Farmy's farm-direct sourcing produced higher per-basket costs than the supermarket online shops it competed with. After 2022, with Swiss household budgets tightening, the premium became an obstacle. Customers who tried Farmy during COVID reverted to Migros Online and Coop@home, where the same brands often cost 20 to 40% less.
Third, the unit economics of farm-direct delivery in a small country. Same-day delivery from many small producers to many small baskets has a structural cost-per-order problem. Even Coop and Migros, with their massive scale, do not earn money in online grocery (NZZ January 2025). Farmy's electric vehicle fleet, dedicated logistics in Zurich and Lausanne, and small-producer pickup network multiplied that problem. The Pico merger was an attempt to share logistics costs across two adjacent operations. It did not deliver the savings the board projected.
Who lost what
The 1'850 small crowdfunding investors. Approximately CHF 4.2 million invested in the 2022-2023 campaign at a CHF 65-70 million company valuation. At the January 2025 Pico acquisition (CHF 100'000 total price), the crowdinvestors were already wiped out. The May 2026 bankruptcy formalises that loss. Inside Paradeplatz reports that early Farmy backer Ruedi Noser, FDP Ständerat from Zurich, was among the early investors.
About 100 employees. Most are based in Zurich. The June 2025 Ecublens VD closure cost 29 additional jobs.
The 1'200 Swiss producers. Approximately 60% of Farmy's revenue came from this network. They now need alternative sales channels.
The board and management. Chairman Dominique Locher takes personal reputational damage. Notably, Locher was elected to the SBB board on 29 April 2026, ten days before Farmy's bankruptcy filing, a sequence that has already generated critical commentary in Swiss business media.
One verified clarification: there is no evidence that Migros was a Farmy equity investor. The Migros connection is purely through Locher's personal CV (he was CEO of LeShop, the Migros-owned predecessor of Migros Online, from September 2013 to August 2017). That is a CV link, not a corporate-ownership link.
Where to buy farm-direct in Switzerland now
| Service | Model | Coverage | Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coop@home | Chain online grocery | All cantons | Full Coop range, Supercard | Not farm-direct |
| Migros Online | Chain online grocery | All cantons | Full Migros range, Cumulus | Not farm-direct |
| Crowd Container | Producer cooperative subscription | Mostly Zurich + DE-CH | Genuine producer cooperative | Limited geographic coverage |
| Vom Hof.ch / Marktplatz | Hofladen directory | CH-wide directory | Find Hofläden near you, Knospe-certified | Not delivery, in person |
| Smood (Manor Food) | On-demand grocery | Major cities | Speed, broad city coverage | High delivery fees, not farm-direct |
| Local Hofläden | Direct from farmer | CH-wide | Direct, often Knospe-certified | In person, opening hours vary |
| Migros Bio / Coop Naturaplan | Supermarket organic | All cantons | Everywhere, Knospe, 20-40 % cheaper than Farmy was | Not farm-direct |
For genuine farm-direct, the most authentic replacements are local Hofläden (in person) and Crowd Container (delivered, limited region). For online convenience at supermarket prices, Coop@home or Migros Online cover the use case. See the online grocery shopping in Switzerland guide for the wider category, the grocery delivery apps comparison for the on-demand options, and Naturaplan vs Migros Bio for the supermarket organic side.
How Rappn fits in
Rappn is a Swiss grocery price-comparison platform aggregating weekly offers across the seven main retailers (Migros, Coop, Aldi, Lidl, Denner, Aligro and Otto's). It is not a farm-direct service and was never a Farmy competitor. The two models address different consumer needs.
That said, the Farmy collapse confirms what Rappn's model assumes: in the post-pandemic Swiss grocery market, price intelligence across mainstream retailers is more durable as a value proposition than premium positioning for a single channel.
Sources checked: .
Farmy AG + Pico Lebensmittel AG filed bankruptcy on 9 May 2026 (Inside Paradeplatz broke it, SRF + 20 Min + Blick confirmed). ~100 employees losing jobs, ~1'850 crowdinvestors lose CHF 4.2M, ~1'200 Swiss producers lose their channel. Founded 2014, peak revenue CHF 32M in 2021, acquired by Pico for CHF 100'000 in Jan 2025. Migros was NOT an investor (corrects a common confusion). Use Rappn home to find your nearest Migros Online or Coop@home pickup alternative.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Farmy still operating?
No. Farmy AG and Pico Lebensmittel AG filed for bankruptcy on 9 May 2026. The online shop is offline. The company is in formal bankruptcy proceedings under the Konkursamt Zürich.
When did Farmy go bankrupt?
Saturday, 9 May 2026. Inside Paradeplatz broke the story that day; SRF, 20 Minuten, Blick and Watson confirmed within 24 hours. The Farmy website displayed the official farewell message from that date.
What happened to Farmy crowdfunding investors?
The approximately 1'850 small investors who participated in the 2022-2023 crowdfunding campaign, contributing roughly CHF 4.2 million, lost their investment in two stages. At the January 2025 Pico acquisition (CHF 100'000 total price), the crowdinvestors were effectively wiped out. The May 2026 bankruptcy formalises the total loss. There is no current indication of any recovery mechanism.
Who owned Farmy?
Until January 2025, Farmy was owned by a combination of founders, professional investors, and ~1'850 small crowdinvestors. In January 2025, Pico Lebensmittel AG acquired Farmy for CHF 100'000. At bankruptcy, Pico Lebensmittel AG was the parent company. Both Pico and Farmy filed simultaneously.
What are the best Farmy alternatives in Switzerland?
For online convenience: Coop@home and Migros Online. For genuine farm-direct delivery (limited region): Crowd Container. For in-person farm-direct: local Hofläden via Vom Hof.ch or Marktplatz. For organic at supermarket prices: Migros Bio and Coop Naturaplan.
Did Migros own Farmy?
No. There is no verified evidence that Migros held an equity stake in Farmy. The Migros connection is personal: Dominique Locher, Farmy's chairman from 2020 and later CEO, had previously been CEO of LeShop (the predecessor of Migros Online) from September 2013 to August 2017. That is a CV link, not a corporate-ownership link.