Supervision of the State proves difficult to legally convict

What the Dutch poultry industry feared has come true. It appears that the State of the Netherlands cannot be held legally liable for failing supervision in the fipronil crisis. This became apparent after the judge's ruling, in which he ruled that the NVWA had not acted unlawfully as a supervisory authority.

The poultry sector reacts disappointed on the pronunciation and is studying for a possible appeal, said LTO Nederland/NOP. Together with the NVP and 124 affected poultry farmers, they had brought the case against the State. 

The court endorses the conclusion of the Sorgdrager Committee, which had previously indicated that the NVWA had not responded adequately to the signals from the use of fipronil† But according to the judge, that does not mean that the regulator acted unlawfully, by not taking immediate action against Chickfriend's illegal use of fipronil.

Eric Hubers, chairman of LTO Nederland/NOP, says in a statement from the organization that the ruling hurts. “The legal bar is set very high if you want to hold the State liable for failing supervision. We did not try to do this to clean up our own alley, but because we must be able to trust that our supervisor will take action if there is reason to do so. LTO Nederland will now first study the verdict, after which we will determine together with the affected entrepreneurs and the NVP whether it makes sense to appeal.” 

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