Exception to phosphate rules
Rare cows spared in reduction plan
There will be an exception in the phosphate reduction plan for farmers who keep rare cow breeds. They do not have to give up animals in order to limit the manure surplus. Outgoing State Secretary Martijn van Dam announced this to the House of Representatives on Thursday, April 13.
The livestock farmers had various actions, such as polder panda, already warned that cattle such as the Groninger Blaarkop, the Lakenvelder Rund and the Brandrode Rund are in danger of disappearing from the Netherlands. The exception in the plan ensures that the number of rare varieties will remain stable for the time being.
At the bottom of reduction plan
Livestock farmers with rare breeds of cows were in danger of being wiped out by Van Dam's phosphate reduction plan. To keep their heads above water, many farmers would have already sold their cattle or had them slaughtered. This was indicated by the Rare Pet Breeds Foundation (SZH).
As the rare cow breeds produce less, dairy farmers would feel compelled to give up their dairy herd or exchange it for a standard breed. The standard cow breed, Holstein Friesian, is much more profitable for the farmers. Why? They give more milk.
Van Dam points out that only 2 percent of the cattle in the Netherlands are not Holstein Friesian. Only a small part of it is a rare breed. He now wants to exclude the growth of rare breeds from the scheme, so that these farmers do not get fined and can keep their cow population healthy.
Rare Pet Breeds Foundation
Geert Boink, chairman of the Rare Pet Breeds Foundation, hopes that the relaxation of the rules will ensure that more farmers choose to keep the animals after all. “It's a relief from the pressure. However, this is only for 2017. In 2018, a new law will come into effect in which the position of rare varieties is not yet guaranteed. Then we have to get back to work.'
Polder panda
The foundation started earlier this week with the action polder panda. With this, the foundation wanted to demonstrate that these cow breeds fall under the heading of 'endangered species'. We all know that the giant panda is an endangered species. Only 2000 of them are still alive in China. However, what we apparently don't know is that we also have endangered species in the Netherlands. Of our primeval cow: the Groninger Blaarkop with the appropriate nickname 'polder panda', only about 2000 still live. How bizarre is it that there is a zoo in the Netherlands that has a special enclosure for 2 Chinese pandas, while literally dozens of polder pandas are currently being transported to the slaughterhouse?'
Previously an adjustment
The phosphate reduction plan was announced last Wednesday, April 12, already modified. Then Van Dam announced that beef farmers and other non-delivery cattle farms would fall completely outside the scheme. They also do not have to dispose of any animals this year.
Kimberly Baker
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