Gutsch - the Swiss organic oat drink

Written by Philipp Schallberger am 13. November 2021

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In November 2021, the Gutsch Cooperative launched the first Swiss organic oat drink specifically developed for coffee beverages. We co-founded the cooperative with other coffee companies. With this, we are setting a sign for Swiss organic agriculture, more conscious consumption, and meaningful collaboration with other companies.

"Water from Schlieren instead of Sweden" was long Gutsch's internal motto, until it became more and more circulated and finally served as a conversation starter with interested parties. An oat drink consists of approx. 90% water; the rest is processed oats, oil, salt, and in the case of Gutsch, red algae. Soyana in Schlieren near Zurich bottles the drink for Gutsch, from where the water also originates.

The oat drinks, which are particularly valued in the specialty coffee industry, largely come from England, Sweden, or Denmark. The oat drink market is currently moving very quickly and is becoming increasingly differentiated, with more products coming onto the market every year.

In Switzerland, Soyana's products are very widespread; we also served them for years at Café Frühling and at Kaffeemacher Café at Basel SBB. Emmi recently launched an oat drink with Swiss oats (non-organic) called Beleaf, and according to industry insiders, more drinks are expected to hit the market.

So it was not surprising that we received an early rejection from an organic wholesaler for Gutsch, stating that they were not interested in reselling. Fortunately - because this significantly shaped Gutsch's approach. We had to look for other channels than reselling to wholesalers.

Oat drink from Switzerland - still extremely rare

Gutsch is not the first organic oat drink with Swiss oats - the drink from Lebenshof Aurelio quickly gained many fans, as did the oat drink from Biohof Hübeli. These projects were the first in Switzerland to use organic oats. There will likely be more products soon, and above all, the market is now becoming interesting for larger bottlers.

With Gutsch, we had a clear focus: we wanted to go into gastronomy - we wanted to go where we ourselves had a need. Where we had contacts, where we knew what the requirements for an oat drink in the coffee industry were. So we took matters into our own hands to create the suitable alternative. And Gutsch had to be organic - that was always clear.

Photo: Boris Müller, from the Tagesanzeiger Instagram channel

Focus on gastronomy

With Gutsch, we stipulated in our statutes that we would not enter classic retail. The first inquiry from a supermarket came just six days after the launch - so the demand for a Swiss organic oat drink is definitely there.

To be able to sell the large quantities of a private label production at all, we targeted gastronomy channels from the beginning. Thus, with the first three test runs of 50,000 liters, we were able to supply various cafés and restaurants and get direct, unvarnished feedback. One week after the launch in November 2021, we were already supplying over 30 businesses with Gutsch. All businesses that serve Gutsch are members of the cooperative - that is a condition.

The Gutsch Cooperative as a foundation

We chose the cooperative model because we see Gutsch as a community project. Equal rights, equal voting power, a lot of grassroots democracy. Membership in the cooperative is obtained with a share certificate of CHF 500 (companies) or CHF 250 (patrons). This model of issuing share certificates served as our initial credit. We tried not to set up Gutsch as a food startup. Thus, the model of external investment was eliminated. At the same time, we wanted to have the people at the helm of Gutsch who support Gutsch - and these are the cooperative members.

Soyana - the private label bottler for Gutsch

Within a year, Gutsch was ready for the market. From the first discussions with Soyana, to recipe development, to design, to setting up the supply chain. Philipp Schallberger (Kaffeemacher:innen) and Mathias Bühler from Adrianos Kaffeebrennerei in Bern were in the lead.

Soyana is a pioneer in plant-based drinks in Switzerland. Founder Walter Dänzer was a friend of the Gutsch project from the very beginning and is now a cooperative member himself.

Gutsch Soyana

Soyana CEO Walter Dänzer in conversation with Sascha Britsko from Tages-Anzeiger

The article from Tagesanzeiger from November 5th can be accessed via this link: Gutsch Reportage

The design - final project by Sara Dietrich

With Gutsch, we wanted to take different approaches, also in terms of design. Sara was just before her Bachelor's degree at the School of Art and Design in Lucerne. We got in touch with Sara, and she took on Gutsch. Sara designed the entire brand language, the typography, the corporate design, the website, and: the "actual" packaging.

Gutsch Sara Dietrich

But why does Gutsch now simply look white?

As is often the case, there are technical reasons. The minimum order quantity for custom packaging is several hundred thousand. We didn't want to make this investment and looked for alternatives. The white packaging is now the blank provided by the manufacturer. The feedback from production was mixed; it looked "quite special" - then we knew it was right.

Sara Dietrich's complete work can be viewed here.

Will we ever fill Gutsch in Sara's packaging?

The white packaging is a makeshift solution that we have grown to like very much. It's just different. But Sara's packaging is the goal - the more Gutsch you all drink, the closer we get to filling Gutsch in Sara's Tetrapaks in the future, inspired by Swiss industrial design of the 1970s.

Gutsch - where to buy? And how expensive is Gutsch?

The Gutsch Cooperative sells to its cooperative members.
Cooperative members serve Gutsch in their establishments and/or can resell Gutsch to private individuals.
List of sales points

Prices for end consumers range from CHF 3.70 to 3.95/L. Each business decides its own selling price within this range, based on its own costs.

The selling price of Gutsch to cooperative members varies between CHF 2.40/L and CHF 2.80/L, depending on the quantity ordered.

The Gutsch Cooperative

More benefit for all - that's what we decided at Gutsch. The more businesses participate in Gutsch, the better the conditions for everyone. That is the goal of a cooperative. On our website we write:

Together we move forward. The more people who participate in the Gutsch Cooperative, the more attractive we can make the framework conditions for everyone. The cooperative has the signaling effect of a movement. The more cafes in Switzerland that join forces for the same cause, the more incentives will be created for the production of organic oats. And we all benefit from that.