Yesterday's farmers' protest (Tuesday 17 November) may have had less impact in the media and politics than previous demonstrations, but many farmers made it clear that the government's nitrogen plans are bothering them enormously.
It is estimated that the farmers had drawn more than 1.000 tractors to the Hofstad for the action organized by the Farmers Defense Force (FDF). This time as a campaign against the Environment Act, but also for the launch of the FarmerFriendly initiative. FDF is also the initiator behind FarmerFriendly. Originally the idea was to concentrate the protest at Huis ten Bosch, where the royal family lives, to deliver a letter to the king. That was banned by the city.
The manifestation was now held at the Koekamp, near the Malieveld. The tractors then drove past Huis ten Bosch to later visit the CBL, the branch organization for the supermarket chain, in Leidschendam. With the CBL, FDF has the initiative FarmerFriendly initiated, whereby participating farmers receive a premium on their products. FDF calls on as many farmers as possible to join a cooperative that is necessary to distribute the compensation among the participants.
The protest went off without any major problems, except for an incident where farmers pulled tractors past a police blockade. These tractors were stopped by the police a short distance away. A group of farmers also parked their tractors on the edge of the Malieveld, which cannot count on the approval of the police. The police had once again locked the city center with cars and army vehicles.
Great evil in the House of Representatives
This time, the campaign focused on the Environment Act, which includes the Nitrogen Reduction and Nature Improvement Act. Sieta van Keimpema, director of FDF, emphasized in her speech that the farmers are present to prevent the law from being pushed through. "We will come back if necessary," Van Keimpema says. "There may be a pandemic, but the great evil is in the House of Representatives."
Two female entrepreneurs also speak on the podium, who read their letter to the King. Lucinda Middelhof expresses her concerns about the future of their life's work, their company. Ilse Grummel Fikkert tells about the image of the farmer from the past to the present. "A farmer is a hard-working man with often a small heart. Where in the past a farmer was seen as an important person, he is now painted away".
Land grab by green grabs
Jan Cees Vogelaar also took the stage to say that he has stepped down from the various board positions because he is running for a seat in the House of Representatives on behalf of Forum for Democracy. He expresses himself about 'land grab by the green grabbers': farmland that has been registered as nature by certain authorities without the correct procedure, of which the farmer himself has not been informed. Vogelaar believes that MPs who vote in favor of the nitrogen law in March do not earn any votes. He wants to change everything when he comes into the Chamber.
Finally, Kees Hanse and the young ladies Famke and Jelske tell their story. Hanse mentions the advantages of coated seed compared to the current aphid approach. In addition, he emphasizes that contemporary developments have a cost-increasing effect, which is not recouped in the end product. At the request of the BoerBurgerBeweging, he has himself placed on the list, but at the bottom, because otherwise there is a chance that he will end up in the House of Representatives and then he will have to take off his work shoes. Hanse doesn't feel like that.
Best farmers in the world
The two young ladies also come with a letter to the king, in which they wonder aloud whether our monarch knows that we have the best farmers in the world. "We should be proud of that!" the girls said. They also say that they don't like seeing their parents sad every time they think about the future of the farm. Both ladies would like to take over the farm, but are afraid that the opportunity will soon pass them by.
After the demonstration at the Koekamp and the presentation of the letter at the Cabinet of the King, the tractors drove past Huis ten Bosch Palace, where they were allowed to drive by, but not stopped. Mark van den Oever, chairman of FDF, called for a first round of the tractor, since large nails have been found under the tires here and there.
FarmerFriendly
Then the tractors set course. There it turned out that the street to the CBL office was blocked. The farmers are directed to a parking lot a little further down the road. Sieta van Keimpema also addressed the crowd there, indicating that she expects this not to be the last time that people will 'tour' to The Hague.
The FarmerFriendly (FF) quality mark gives supermarkets and consumers the opportunity to improve the farmer's revenue model. Jos Ubels, vice-chairman of FDF, explains the concept further. Farmers, supermarkets and CBL continue to earn the same throughout the year. At the end of the year, CBL skims off 3% of its income from supermarkets that are affiliated with FF. This 3% is divided among the members of the cooperative. The concept was conceived by FDF, but not a party from FDF. Affiliated representatives are seven organisations: DDB, NFO, NVP, NAV and. FRP.
LTO is not participating for the time being
LTO has also stepped in, it was announced on the podium. But that later turns out not to be the case at all, the spokesperson for LTO Nederland nuances. "We are curious about the content and the elaboration of FDF's FarmerFriendly plan, but we do not know it substantively." LTO is open to new and creative ideas that can improve the income of farmers and horticulturists, he says.
The enthusiasm at FDF about the possible participation of LTO probably arose after a conversation with Sjaak van der Tak, the future chairman of LTO Netherlands, with FDF president Mark van de Oever last Saturday. Van Oever indicated on the FDF website that he found this a very open and constructive conversation.
It is not yet certain whether FarmerFriendly will continue. Van den Oever indicated on the podium on Tuesday that he would like an answer from the CBL before December 10 whether they participate in the initiative, so that it can start on January 1, 2021. The organization hoped that the presentation of the plan could take place outside on the stage, but it happened inside. After the announcement and handover, the activists went home.
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