Background Nitrogen mood
Initials Agricultural Agreement is explosive material
A few more weeks and it should be clear whether or not there will be an Agricultural Agreement. The cabinet is very keen, because not only Minister Piet Adema misses the night's sleep for it, but Prime Minister Mark Rutte also undertakes nocturnal rambles through The Hague for it.
Naturally, he arrived at the Ockenburg estate, where the night of the near-agreement was spent. According to rumors, he would even visit agricultural administrators. Just like the 'plumber' Johan Remkes, who was long since dismissed from his job.
Big fish and pilot man
It is difficult to verify whether the latter is correct, because those involved do not respond. FDF captain Mark van den Oever seems according to his vlog to have ears in the living room of the Meijer family. It is a place where they can know something about it, because NAJK chairman Roy Meijer is almost the pilot man of big fish Sjaak van der Tak during the consultations about the Agricultural Agreement. They are inseparable and Meijer is heavily lobbied. The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality also sees the NAJK as a fairly accommodating organisation, something that traditionally could not be said of young farmers.
Perspective mascot
The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality does not mind. Adema takes advantage of this and tries to turn the NAJK into a kind of mascot, because with the NAJK on board you can indicate that you think perspective is important. On the night of the 17e on the 18e In May, the parties seemed very close to an agreement. In the days that followed, things got further out of the picture, because then the LTO departments started asking questions to their chairman and some internal dots were put on the i's and crosses again. Last week, the contribution of the retail to compensation for more sustainable farmers seemed to be an exciting point, because it is important for the revenue model. Now the old pain points are emerging again, including the PAS reporters, LVE standard and the like.
Although Adema made it clear in the House of Representatives on Tuesday: the agricultural agreement is not about PAS detectors and not about nitrogen. The minister also hinted that he considers it an achievement that as long as peace has been kept and that it is all about him not to end up in the situation as it was last year, when tractors went to the Malieveld and farmers revolted. Adema: "And here it is, it may take a long time, but all the while we sit around the table together."
Support warning departments
'Club magazine' Nieuwe Oogst (quoting Van der Tak) published this week a statement from the chairmen of the departments, in which they reiterated their objections and expressed their support for the efforts of their chairman. However, there is something strange about this message. It is called a message of support, but reads like a warning to its own chairman: 'don't go too far'.
This indicates exactly the clamp in which Van der Tak finds himself. He can sign an agreement with the minister, but if he does, there is a considerable chance that major mutiny will arise within the LTO's own ranks or that the organization will explode. And that is not something Adema or Rutte will get along with, because what good is a signature without an organisation?
Brabant sand farmers
An example of the tensions: in Brabant there is great dissatisfaction among sand farmers about the arrival of a LSU or grassland standard, but a discussion about it seemed impossible. A group of farmers was therefore busy organizing a protest meeting, possibly with Caroline van der Plas as a speaker. Their own official foremen had had their chance, it was judged. When the ZLTO leadership got wind of this, a private meeting was quickly called, with the national dairy chairman as speaker, among others, who has been silent so far. In addition to a GVE standard, many farmers also see nothing in an accountable substance balance (ASB), which can be obtained via the Kringloopwijzer, for example. They fear that they will be gagged even further by this.
Reading groups
Back to the 'support warning. It seems that the cryptic message is something else, not support, not warning, but rather a sign of impotence and perhaps surrender. Because while the formal negotiations stopped last week, massages continue in reading groups. LTO administrators and possibly also administrators of other organizations are informed of and bound by agreements that already seem to be in the ground, so it is called, agreements towards a gradually becoming stricter GVE/grassland standard, plus mandatory manure processing.
Timmermans setback
Another looming threat to agriculture has been averted for a while. This concerns the European Nature Restoration Act, which European Commissioner Frans Timmermans thought he would rush through the European administrative bodies just as quickly as his 'Green Deal'. This week was not good for him. First the Agriculture Committee and then the Fisheries Committee in the European Parliament rejected his proposal, mainly due to the alert actions of SGP member Bert-Jan Ruissen. Timmermans has yet to present his intentions in the environmental committee, which is leading in this dossier. But several parties in the European Parliament have already spoken against it. Timmermans is not used to this. He also says he has no 'plan B' for his plans and threatens with blockades in other areas if he does not get his way, MEPs say.
Inescapable legislation
The Dutch government is also against Timmermans' plans. Minister Christianne van der Wal is hard on the nitrogen dossier, but thinks the European Commissioner's proposals go too far. No coalition agreements have therefore been made about this.
There is an interesting parallel between Timmermans' plans and the Dutch nitrogen and natural laws. The driving forces behind these regulations are always said to be expert opinions, which apparently cannot be contradicted and therefore have a high 'inevitability' content. At least that's how it's done politically.
The current impasse continues with all the discussion about future regulations and agreements that should regulate matters for later implementation. MOB continues to tighten the thumbscrews in the field of climate. This week the club won a case about the nature permit for cocoa processor Olam in Koog aan de Zaan. According to the Haarlem court, this has been given too much room for emissions for nitrogenous substances. On the one hand, this may feel fair to agriculture - equal monks, equal felling - but it also makes it clear that there is no peace and security for anyone.
BBB yes, D66 no?
Provincial college formation, from which agriculture expects some relief, is progressing slowly. Big winner, the BBB is the leading party in the negotiations almost everywhere, but it does not yet lead to concrete results. Bad rumors say that the old parties, especially those in the government coalition, have been advised not to hurry. Until then, new policy can still be withheld. Maybe training is just too hard. It is also striking that D66 in particular has little say in the conversation, even where the loss of seats was a bit less than expected.
Klaas van der Horst
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.
