Brabant wants to stop goat farming immediately

The States of Brabant decided on Friday evening to immediately announce a construction freeze for goat farms.

D66 filed a motion to put a lock on goat farms. This motion was supported by a majority. The construction freeze will take effect immediately. Permits until July 7 are still being processed, new permits are no longer being processed. The construction freeze will be in effect until mid-2020.

The reason for the lock is health reasons. Recent additional research Livestock and Health of Local Residents shows that residents living in the vicinity of goat farms within a radius of 2 kilometers have an increased risk of pneumonia. 

Additional research
Anne-Marie Spierings deputy of Agricultural Development announces that a general practitioner will conduct a survey among residents living near goat farms. It concerns research of general practitioner data. 

Strongly grown
The number of goats in the Netherlands has grown significantly in the past year. This is evident from the agricultural census of the Central Bureau of Statistics. Goat farming is the fastest growing livestock sector in the Netherlands. The total on 1 April 2017 is more than 531.000. Growth was strongest in dairy goats under one year of age. The growth rate there is 27 percent.

There are currently 34 percent more goats in the Netherlands than in the agricultural census five years ago.

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