News Agricultural vision
Schouten specifies the way to sustainable livestock farming
The road to sustainable livestock farming will have '3 main tracks', writes Minister Carola Schouten (Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality) to the House of Representatives. The 'Sustainable Livestock Farming' program gives innovators an exemplary role and the minister aims to further stimulate the market for sustainable products.
In the Letter to Parliament Schouten writes that the program is a first step in the transition towards circular agriculture. According to her, new revenue models are needed in which farmers receive a fair price for products that are produced sustainably. "That requires a turnaround in the thinking and acting of consumers, buyers and all links in the animal production chain," says Schouten.
Inspire and experiment
One of the main tracks is 'inspire and experiment'. Recently, Schouten has organized meetings with the 'innovators' in the livestock sectors to discuss their experience with sustainability. This has shown, among other things, that many find it difficult to find financing and that current regulations sometimes get in the way. This group also indicates that there is a need for space to experiment.
The minister writes that she is already busy with the latter wish, for example through the introduction of various regional initiatives and pilots. Schouten is referring, among other things, to the Region Deals in the Northern Netherlands (stimulation of nature-inclusive agriculture) and the start-up of Food Valley (reducing emissions, closing cycles and improving the revenue model).
Improving conditions for sustainability
A second aim of the minister is to improve and simplify the route to sustainability. It wants to do this, among other things, by improving the farmer's market position and increasing the production of the regional and regional products to support. Minister Schouten is now working on a plan to increase the demand for sustainable products. "The intention is that this plan will be presented in the spring." This plan is being drawn up with the Alliance for the Sustainability of Livestock Farming (AVV) and MeatNL.
In order to persuade consumers to opt for a sustainable product more often, the minister is introducing a subsidy for broadening the 'Beter Leven' quality mark. However, increasing the market share of sustainable products is also important in relation to exports, the minister writes. That is why she is organizing a European conference in 2020 to spar with the countries in Northwestern Europe about making livestock farming more sustainable.
“As described, financing is experienced as (very) difficult. That is why I am in talks with several banks to make financing applications for sustainability more attractive." She also wants to introduce a subsidy scheme with which entrepreneurs can investigate the technical and/or economic feasibility of a (new) sustainable concept. In addition, there will be a subsidy for livestock farmers who invest in emission-reducing measures in the barn. "The government is making €60 million available for this, and an additional €112 million will be made available under the Climate Agreement," the minister continues.
Pig farming chooses ammonia reduction
In the Climate agreement Agreements have already been made about combating climate change, for example with regard to animal feed, manure storage and low-emission stables. "However, for the transition to circular agriculture, better closing the manure-animal feed cycle is an important task. This involves increasing the use of residual flows and improving the quality of manure for organic fertilization. An integrated approach and collaboration within the chains is then essential," writes Schouten. That is why the Minister has asked the sector parties from 5 large livestock sectors (dairy cattle, poultry, pigs, calves and dairy goats) to make agreements about making their sector more sustainable.
For pig farming, the parties have united in the Coalition Vitalization Pig Farming (CoViVa). Initially, the sector set itself the goal of increasing the proportion of raw materials that are unsuitable for human consumption in animal feed. In particular, use should also be made of raw materials of European origin. The party wants to further focus on low-emission business systems. "The aim is to reduce ammonia emissions by approximately 2030% by 85. For greenhouse gases this is 90%, for odor 70% and for particulate matter 50%", the coalition reports.
CoViVa also writes that from 2022 it wants a digital animal passport for every pig and that an integrated benchmark is being developed to manage animal health and welfare. A budget of €40 million has been made available for all matters together. Schouten supplements this with a subsidy scheme for innovation and investments that focus on source-oriented sustainability in the pig stable. Finally, Schouten wants to commit to a total ban on tail docking.
Dairy farming focuses on land-relatedness
The targets for dairy farming have been drawn up by the so-called Sustainable Dairy Chain (DZK). In the coming years, the parties in DZK want to focus on an integrated approach to methane and ammonia emissions and want animal welfare on dairy farms to be monitored. "That is why figures on calf mortality will be published every quarter," adds Schouten. DZK also writes in a press release that a safe workplace must be stimulated by creating awareness.
The aim of DZK is that the dairy sector will be land-bound by 2025, as described by the land-related committee† This concerns, among other things, the extraction of protein from our own soil (protein standard of 65%), the closing of neighborhood contracts and a decrease in the import of protein-rich raw materials. According to Schouten, the plans for this need to be further elaborated.
In the poultry sector, the target has been set to halve the emission of particulate matter in 10 years and to switch to 100% 'non-food raw materials' in due course. In the veal sector, one of the targets is to reduce the import of calves, particularly from distant destinations, by 2030% by 20. The sector also wants the use of antibiotics in the sector to be reduced by 2024% by 50. In dairy goat farming, too, efforts are being made to reduce the use of antibiotics.
Kimberly Baker
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