Control Al(l)t Delete: hard reset is required in the Netherlands

Ctrl-Alt-Delete is a combination of keys used as a shortcut to forcefully stop running programs. A similar hard reset is needed in the Netherlands, as the political landslide in the last elections has made clear. The voters have sent an unmissable signal to the current cabinet and all the consultancy and subsidy clubs that feed and grab at the government's waste.

Parallel to a national directive government that bases its obsessive policy on an unreliable model like AERIUS, the 'charities' lavishly sponsored by the Postcode Lottery have emerged as the 'new farmers'. Examples of this are 'Herenboeren' and 'Land van Ons', which respectively position themselves with buzzing sentences such as 'We believe that the way we use our land should be just as diverse and mutually reinforcing as an ecosystem. So no monoculture, but socio-, economic- and biodiverse landscapes,' and 'Meadows look nice and green, but are dead. Time to turn the tide! We believe in the resilience of the earth and the power of the citizen collective. As a cooperative, Land van Ons buys agricultural land on behalf of the participants. We restore biodiversity and the landscape on this land.'

Eloquent daydreamers and sky cyclists
Everyone is of course free to develop any initiative whatsoever, but the disdain with which these eloquent daydreamers and sky cyclists despise today's farmers is shocking. The visions, which are often based on organic, vegetable cultivation, account for roughly 2% of sales in the Netherlands, but the goals that Heerenboeren and Aardpeer have set themselves are devoid of any sense of reality. They want to get their hands on no less than 600.000 hectares of the 1,8 million hectares of agricultural land in the Netherlands, rounded off to 30%. Because everyone is for nature, right? Supported by donations, gifts and memberships from frightened citizens – after all, nature cannot wait a day – they push distraught young and enterprising regular farmers out of the market without a chance. This blocks the intended extensification of regular agriculture.

Foundations are springing up like mushrooms, one name even more promising than the other: Herenboeren, Land van Ons, Jerusalem artichoke, The Places, Fertile Cycle, We Land, Transition Coalition, Farmers Council, Green Farmer Plan, Ground of Existence, Future Farmers, the BioTuinders, Caring Farmers, MaatschapWij and we could go on and on. They agree on one thing: today's farmers ruin the soil and don't treat animals with respect.

Wind blows from a different angle
It is precisely this know-it-all tone that the Netherlands dealt with hard during the last elections. The 'nature rescuers' have no knowledge of the proverb 'modesty adorns man'. However, since March 15, the wind has been blowing from a different angle. With the changed wind, the realization that we desperately need our farmers, market gardeners and fishermen for sufficient, safe and healthy food has been restored. Experienced and skilled food makers who are perfectly capable of supplying what society demands, provided there is perspective and an acceptable income. Above all, a sector that is full of innovations with the aim of even better management of the land, minimizing environmental impact and optimizing animal welfare.

As a citizen, do you really want to mean something for nature? Consume less. Start small and roll up your sleeves in a vegetable garden. Experience for yourself how much effort and time it takes to convert all your efforts into food. Regain your respect for today's farmers, market gardeners and fishermen. Don't let fertile delta soil be lost to hopelessly unsuccessful food forests. Dutch farmers, market gardeners and fishermen are among the best in the world, especially when we zoom in on environmental impact. It shows unprecedented haughtiness to carelessly brush this aside without essential practical knowledge.

Let farmers farm
The blatant labor shortage in education, healthcare and public transport makes the haughty attitude even more reprehensible. Do you want to mean something to the world? Leaving something as a good person? Let farmers farm and make a contribution that really matters. Retrain to become a teacher, nurse or conductor.

And government? Take initiative. Instead of hiding behind the announcement of yet another 'investigative report' from the incestuous, self-perpetuating 'problems' consulting industry, respect professionals in the field. Trust farmers and citizens, trust professionals, people from the field. Give plenty of room for innovation and perspective and apply 'Control Al(l)t Delete' to an endless mash of controlling and suspicious rules and legislation whispered by white-collar criminals.

Wim Groot Koerkamp
Founder/Partner ReMarkAble, co-founder BBB

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