Pumpkins are becoming increasingly popular in Switzerland, according to the sales figures of the Swiss retail trade. They have risen steadily in recent years and ended at their highest level yet in 2016, at 4,731 tonnes.

Sales volumes have increased by an average of 278 tonnes annually since data collection was started in 2011. Average pumpkin prices increased from 2012 to 2015, then dropped to 4.5 CHF (3.85 euros) per kg. Pumpkins are a very seasonal product; most quantities are purchased from October to December. Therefore there are no accurate numbers for 2017 yet.

Who buys these pumpkins?
On average, households with children under 18 buy more pumpkins than others. This was revealed in an analysis by Nielsen Switzerland, which included purchases directly from farmers themselves. Since 2014, the divide between households with and without children has increased noticeably. The increasing popularity of Halloween certainly plays a part in this. Other aspects, such as the size of the household and its income are also determining factors. Nevertheless, for families with children pumpkins are popular as never before.