An extreme amount of liquid manure was deposited this spring. Both in the Netherlands and across the border. Never before has so much liquid manure been transported. Although these figures are relieving in the context of the manure crisis, insiders warn against celebrating too soon. 'Although a lot has been deposited,...
In the first quarter, 33.893.922 tonnes of manure were transported in the Netherlands, via almost 350.000 registered journeys, according to figures from RVO. This represents an increase of no less than 64%. In the same period, manure exports increased by 43,4% to over 993.306 tonnes. Of this, 594.051 went to Germany, which represents an increase of 70% compared to the same period last year. Belgium and France also imported considerably more manure in the first quarter.
Within the export, pig and poultry manure still account for the majority, but the export of cattle manure is the most striking with an astronomical increase of 393,7% to 21.958 tonnes.
| Total manure disposal | year | Amount | Ton | Verschil |
| Q1 | 2024 | 224.137 | 7.393.729 | + 1,4 % |
| Q1 | 2025 | 349.313 | 12.125.547 | + 64 % |
Favorable weather and high prices
Johan Mostert, chairman of the manure section of Cumela, says in a response that these figures are a reflection of the activities in the market. "A lot of manure was sold in the first quarter, but this is purely one of the favourable weather conditions. Mostert refers to the dry and sunny spring, which meant that at the start of the spreading season in mid-February, manure could be spread at full speed.
The situation this year is completely different from last year, when it was extremely wet. The consequence of this is that the spring application has ended much earlier than last year, Mostert notes. "In other years, the application was certainly fully applied until the beginning of May and now many batches are often almost finished." This will become visible in the sales figures for the second quarter, the chairman predicts. According to Mostert, the higher manure exports can simply be explained by the high prices. This creates more scope to cover longer distances. In addition, the favourable weather also plays a role in this.
| Manure export | year | Amount | Ton | Verschil |
| Q1 | 2024 | 23.477 | 692.898 | -11,4% |
| Q1 | 2025 | 33.302 | 993.306 | + 43,4 % |
Still a lot of manure in surplus areas
Although a lot of manure was spread this spring, the manure surplus has not been eliminated. "The placement space has already been largely filled in many places, which means that less manure can be placed in the coming months. In addition, there is the further reduction of derogation and the designation of various NV areas, from this year 20% less nitrogen space can be used. Certainly in manure surplus areas such as Friesland, the Veluwe and the Achterhoek still contain a lot of manure for which the placement space is limited. Mostert cannot release any expectations about expected price developments on manure prices.
Price decline levels off
Looking back at the past few weeks, DCA collection contributions have dropped considerably since the start of the spreading season, although the decline has levelled off in recent weeks. In the south of the Netherlands, the decline was the strongest, up to €10 per cubic metre, in Friesland the decline was limited to €2 per cubic metre. Historically, prices remain considerably higher than in previous years. The long-term average shows that manure prices often do not drop further after spring application during the spreading season.
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