News veal farming
Calf farming further cornered
The veal farming sector is increasingly being cornered. A study, commissioned by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, shows that calf fattening as it is currently being designed must eventually disappear. In the future, the calves will have to stay with the dairy farmers for longer or even completely, and imports will be restricted. That writes NOS, which has a concept version in its hands.
About 70% of all calves born in the Netherlands go to the meat industry. Every year 1,5 million calves are slaughtered in our country, half of which are imported from abroad. However, the meat that is subsequently produced does not remain in the Netherlands. About 90% is exported. These are just a few of the criticisms of the veal sector. It is also stated that the manure production of veal calves leads to negative consequences for the environment and climate, and the long-term transport of calves cannot count on much appreciation either.
After a last quibble in 2019 about making the sector more sustainable and the financial conditions that were put forward, outgoing agriculture minister Carola Schouten decided to have the sector investigated. The 'Scenario Study Kalverketen', of which NOS has a draft version, is pushing the entire sector into a corner. "The limited sales in the Netherlands, in combination with the import of calves, means that the 'license to produce' is under considerable pressure," according to the researchers.
Situation not sufficiently improved
The situation in veal farming has improved in many respects in recent years, but it is still insufficient, according to the NOS researchers in the report. For example, they state that the mortality rate among the calves is still too high because breast milk is not administered, that health is under pressure due to long-distance transport from the Baltic States and that resistant bacteria due to excessive antibiotic use is still a major problem. That is why the researchers have drawn up 3 scenarios for the coming years.
In the first plan for the future, calves remain on the dairy farm, grazing is encouraged, they are given unlimited water and soft, larger berths and the transport to the slaughterhouse may not take longer than 4 hours. If companies want to import calves, the same living conditions must be demanded in that country. In short: "The existing calf fattening farms will disappear, as will the assembly centers and long-distance transport."
In the second future plan, the calves stay on the farm for at least 3 months. The calf is then allowed to go to a fattening farm. "Collaboration between the dairy farmer and the veal sector should improve the health and well-being of the calves. Import is also only possible in this plan if the country of origin applies the same requirements." In this scenario, however, veal farming will be significantly reduced.
The third plan for the future is in line with the plans for circular agriculture and is based on a regional short chain. The transport distance from the dairy farm to the veal farmer will be a maximum of 100 kilometres. The influx to the calf sector is based on the need per calf. "In other words: in this plan, the veal farmers have to spread out more across the Netherlands and import is only possible in the border regions of our neighboring countries."
Foreseeing problems
According to various insiders, the scenarios are causing more problems than anticipated. For example, all scenarios also have consequences for the current phosphate regulations. In short, it could mean that about 10% to 15% of the rights should be used to raise calves. As a result, the shrinkage of the dairy herd is firmly continued.
Economic consequences not passed on
The financial and economic consequences of the future plans have not yet been calculated either. According to insiders, the willingness to quit among veal farmers is already high. This will only increase in the future. It is therefore expected that calf fattening will move to countries in eastern Europe, where the 'Dutch way of working' will simply be continued.
The research report can sometimes lead to a lengthy debate. It is therefore expected that the outgoing cabinet will no longer make a decision. In short: the new cabinet has already gained a headache.
Kimberly Baker
© 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.