The cultivation of field beans is under pressure. Despite the opportunities that this cultivation offers, the crop balance is lagging behind. Although there is interest both at home and abroad, there is no stable sales market. Pricing in particular remains a challenge, because field beans are highly dependent on the global trade market, both for animal feed and human consumption.
For Dutch growers, it remains difficult to set up a profitable field bean cultivation. From 2010 to 2020, the area of field beans remained fairly stable. Protein-rich crops, such as field beans, have received increasing attention in recent years within the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). To stimulate the cultivation of these crops, subsidies and additional payments have been made available, especially within the eco-schemes of the CAP. Partly as a result, the area of field beans increased from 2020, with a peak in 2023 of more than 4.000 hectares.
Initially, it was planned to significantly reduce subsidies for nitrogen-fixing crops within the CAP, which also includes field beans, in 2025. A reduction in subsidy of around 75% to 80% means that cultivation must become fully self-sufficient again. The reduction has not been implemented in 2025, but subsidies for nitrogen-fixing crops will probably be significantly reduced. This is also reflected in the development of the area, which has plummeted considerably after 2023.
Added value of field beans
The consumer market for field beans is currently relatively small and is largely determined by processing technology. Field beans contain bitter substances, which affect the taste. Henk Janknegt, chairman of the product organisation Eiwitboeren says: "This is a challenge, since consumers mainly value taste."
High-tech processing can solve this problem, but this process is energy-intensive and therefore expensive. Without the right price, this market remains difficult. The consumption of field beans for human consumption remains limited, explains Jurriaan Visser, manager of grains, seeds and pulses at FarmPlus: "The analysis of the field bean market shows that these beans are mainly tradable as a raw material and are easily traded worldwide. The price is largely determined by the international market, both for animal feed and for human consumption."
Visser says that for Dutch growers, growing field beans is financially less attractive due to the limited balance. "As a result, the area is slowly decreasing. The CAP plays an important role in this. In addition, the yields of field beans have shown strong fluctuations in recent years, depending on the weather and the growing conditions." In recent years, Farmplus has focused on participations and takeovers in companies focused on consumer beans. In Belgium, FarmPlus has invested in the purchase of a majority share of the company Casibeans. This company trades in legumes, including kidney beans, that are directly suitable for consumption. "This segment offers more opportunities for growers than the large-scale cultivation of field beans as a raw material," Visser explains. Janknegt adds: "Brown beans, white beans and kidney beans are processed directly as a food product, while field beans are mainly used in bulk for animal feed. As a result, growing field beans for human consumption remains difficult to make profitable."
Sustainability is not rewarded
Although field beans make an important contribution to soil health and nitrogen fixation, this sustainability contribution is not financially rewarded, Janknegt explains. "A different market approach is needed for a future-proof cultivation of field beans. The current sales opportunities as animal feed do not offer sufficient returns. Farmers are prepared to grow it, but the market must move along and pay better. Without a higher price for high-quality processing and consumption, cultivation will continue to decline. Innovation in technology and market development is necessary to give field beans a full-fledged place in the human consumption market." Gert Jan Bonestroo, grain trader at Poldergraan agrees with Janknegt's statement: "The balance is not good and there are few sales. To be able to get into gold for the CAP, cultivation is a nice extra, but ultimately you have to be able to sell it. We have been working on it for a long time, set up projects, but sufficient yield and pricing, they are simply not there."
Piet Hilarides, CEO of Agrifirm recently gave in an interview with Boerenbusiness also that Agrifirm will not set up any new chain projects for protein crops, such as field beans, for the time being. "Agrifirm has done many sustainability projects in recent years. However, the protein transition is not going as fast as was thought four years ago. The question we have asked ourselves is whether these projects will also yield us a return. Often there is no insight into this yet and so we give it a lower priority."