Methods and exploratory findings of the first Swiss agricultural health cohort FarmCoSwiss

FarmCoSwiss is Switzerland's first agricultural cohort study on farmers' health and wellbeing. It aims to longitudinally describe farmers' mental and physical health and identify risk and protective factors. Between November 2022 and August 2023, 872 participants (65.9% men) were enrolled in the baseline survey assessing farm characteristics, occupational hazards, lifestyle and wellbeing, and physical and mental health. Selected variables were descriptively compared to the general population using Swiss Health Survey (SHS) data (2022) and the Swiss-wide SAPALDIA cohort (2020-2023). Findings suggest better physical health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in younger participants, and better mental HRQoL in older farmers. Furthermore, descriptive comparisons indicate that female farmers may have higher physical, but lower mental HRQoL than men. Most participants (60.5%) were classified as overweight or obese based on self-reported height and weight. Descriptive comparisons between the SHS and FarmCoSwiss suggest that farmers might spend less hours sitting, consume less alcohol and tobacco, but eat more red and processed meat. FarmCoSwiss participants further reported lower prevalences of most diseases compared to SAPALDIA participants. Occupational accidents were common in the farmers' cohort. These high accident rates as well as high BMI values and indications for sex-based differences in physical and mental health highlight the need for further research and in-depth studies. Given increasing political, societal, and environmental pressures on agriculture, epidemiological evidence on farmers' health and wellbeing is crucial to maintain a thriving agricultural workforce.