Livestock farmers hardly invest, if at all, in more sustainable stable solutions. Arable farmers are now also not investing money in, for example, more sustainable crop protection techniques. Rabobank has noticed that the number of financing applications for investments has been at a standstill for some time. At the same time, financiers have also become cautious. The reason is the uncertain government policy, which means that the entire sector does not know where it stands.
Chairman Sjaak van der Tak of LTO Netherlands confirms this reluctance among farmers, growers, banks and other financiers. ‘Investments in and rollout of innovation are at a standstill and innovation is necessary to make the sector more sustainable.’
Big hurdle
Alex Datema, head of Food & Agri at Rabobank Nederland, agrees. ‘There is uncertainty among farmers about the goals they have to achieve. We see this as a major obstacle for the future of agriculture and horticulture. Rabobank wants to participate in the transition and come up with a new proposition. The question is how much effect that has at company level. Because the government does not provide clarity.’
Time and again it has been shown in court that Dutch legislation is not in order
In addition, the financing of agricultural nature and landscape management is under pressure. Politics has increased the goals for agricultural nature management. This is also laid down in the National Strategic Plan approved by the European Commission.
Agricultural agreement
The financing has not been adjusted. During the negotiations on the agricultural agreement, the required budget was estimated at 500 to 750 million euros. “Closer to the last amount,” says Van der Tak.
‘And what is in the budget for 2024? Nothing comes with it. Even the running management packages are not indexed. Only a one-off amount of 15 million euros has been made available for the Landscape Elements Attack Plan. Symbol politics’, says the LTO chairman.
BoerenNatuur, the association of collectives for agricultural nature management, is also concerned about the stagnation of the transition. Interim chairman Dirk de Lugt recently warned that the tightened goals will not be achieved. It also affects the motivation and confidence of the participants.
Biological
Finally, Van der Tak notes that fewer farmers and gardeners are switching to organic. The number of organic companies is even decreasing in various sectors, according to figures from supervisor Skal.
This development is also at odds with the government’s goal of increasing the number of organic farmers and their acreage. “There is lip service that organic agriculture is being promoted, but in fact these farmers are not supported as such,” says the LTO chairman.
Dutch agriculture and horticulture need the transition to more sustainable agriculture to meet the objectives for the environment, water and climate. The three developments – stagnant innovation in companies, pressure on the financing of agricultural nature management and fewer switches to organic agriculture – lead Van der Tak to the conclusion that the transition has come to a standstill. “That’s worrying.”
There have been many developments in the past six months that influence the future of agriculture and horticulture. Negotiations on an agricultural agreement have failed. The cabinet has fallen and new political parties have emerged that may have great significance in the next cabinet yet to be formed. At the same time, the LTO chairman signals that the transition towards more sustainable agriculture is stagnating.
Why is the sustainability of agriculture not getting off the ground now?
‘Sustainability must be future-proof. This means that the products and services of sustainability must be paid for to give a company a future. The most important thing is that farmers and gardeners can achieve sufficient turnover if they become more sustainable. Whether it concerns dairy, meat, potatoes, tomatoes or whatever. We want to make this clear to the cabinet formation.’
You did not see the earning capacity sufficiently reflected in the agricultural agreement, so the talks were ended.
‘Yes. It was about one question. Can we together devise a system with which we can also develop such a tough strategy in Europe to indeed implement sustainability throughout Europe, but at the same time ensure that those products are paid fairly in all those markets?
‘That was also what the discussions for the agricultural agreement were about. Let us now investigate that question. We expect to have a scenario for this around December 1.’
Who is investigating this?
‘We conduct the research with the SEO agency. They do this on the basis of transition paths. And those transition paths were not included in the Agriculture Agreement. That was actually also a shortcoming.’
How should the transition be handled?
‘We think that the transition should be helped in various ways. Sometimes this will be through innovation and other times through services that have social importance and paying for them as such. The bill must then not be picked up by one element of the chain, but by all parts of that chain. So not just the supermarkets, but the entire chain. That starts in the Netherlands, but ultimately it concerns the chain in Europe.’
Should trade agreements also be considered?
‘Yes, you have to be critical of that. I contributed to a round table discussion in the House of Representatives about Mercosur in which I expressed my concerns. It cannot be the case that products are allowed that use substances that are not permitted here. We want to have a level playing field.”
Who should initiate that transition?
‘That is a task for the new minister. One minister and not two. This can lead the ministry in the right direction and arrive at a coherent approach.’
Why not two ministers?
‘They work against each other. Today we do not yet have an innovation scheme, although one has been promised since last year. Because it would go hand in hand with a voluntary purchase scheme that currently exists. The schemes that are really important: for innovation, relocation or switching to nature-inclusive agriculture, do not exist yet.’
At the same time, available innovations are rejected by the courts, such as sustainable stable systems.
‘It has been shown time and time again that Dutch legislation ultimately fails in court. Then the legislation is not in order. A transition process benefits from a guideline for innovation. An important element is that you create reliable legislation.
‘So how can it be that there has not yet been a start to a new system for the RAV, the Ammonia and Livestock Farming Regulations? And if you then list all the sustainability measures, you have to ensure that the entire chain contributes to it.’
How would you settle something like that in the chain?
‘You can of course work with sustainability quality marks or certificates, as we proposed in the agricultural agreement. In Europe they call that labelling. You can attach labeling to the entire European market. These are requirements that products must meet. Like Albert Heijn is doing now or On the way to PlanetProof. But from the European government.
‘This is how you make sustainability future-proof and that must be earned throughout the entire chain. This makes strategic investments in innovation a means to ultimately reach the entire market, whether it concerns a milking robot or cupros. That’s how you can drive change, but that’s not happening now. It’s just a matter of focusing on resources.’
What can agriculture and horticulture respond to this stagnation?
‘I have seen many great new developments arise since the failure of the agricultural agreement. This indicates that those conversations were not in vain.
‘There are organizations from the various agricultural sectors that are taking the lead in initiating their CO2 reduction in order to achieve the climate goals. Such as dairy farming, in which sector organizations are taking steps towards sustainability and also take shrinkage into account. You didn’t see that before the agricultural agreement.
‘In arable farming too, the trade unions formulate what is required of them in terms of environmental and climate objectives and what they need from the government for this.
A third movement is taking place in intensive livestock farming. In some areas, such as the Gelderse Vallei, a specific, targeted approach has been chosen. For example, more measurements are taken to draw up an action plan based on this. That’s how it happens in the industry. But then you also need innovation.’
Why do you mention climate and not nitrogen?
‘Climate is a number one goal. Nitrogen is actually a by-catch of the climate approach. The current nitrogen approach is not producing results. It’s not the right way. The government should not make the same mistake of setting unattainable ambitions and deadlines for climate goals.’
What can a farmer or gardener do with that?
‘Think about how you can support the climate goals. Does that lead to a different approach at the company? Does that lead to a different feeding policy? Does that lead to management measures? Does that lead to people wanting to quit?
‘It’s about making a movement to ensure that every farmer is accountable for climate, nature and water by 2040. And that actually needs to happen much sooner, because the climate is knocking on the door of human civilization. Look at this summer, when it comes to floods, droughts and extreme weather.’
Do you have a message for the politicians or for the future formateur?
‘It’s not possible without farmers. Then the agricultural transition will not get off the ground. The government, with all its power, with all its legislation, is not able to make the transition alone with buyouts and expropriations. This also includes strategic investments and other arrangements. It’s about actually involving farmers and gardeners in that transition.’
LTO makes politically concrete proposals
In the run-up to the elections in November, the LTO has presented a points plan. This plan is an important part of the lobby and has been shared with the political parties as input for the election manifestos. It contains 22 concrete proposals that should contribute to security, stability and confidence for the agricultural sector. LTO asks the parties to come up with an election program that stimulates and supports the transition to robust, sustainable forms of agriculture and horticulture. The points plan goes further than just the agricultural sector: it concerns food security, a vital countryside and a green environment. That is why LTO is committed to a broad transition. Because sustainability can be achieved in various ways: targeted investment in technology, further development of organic agriculture and horticulture, expanding companies with recreational and care functions or integrating the way of working through nature-inclusive agriculture.