'Organic dairy farming can close chain through war'

Bouma: "I notice that there is a lobby going on to cut things down a bit everywhere, to slow down with the Farm-to-Fork strategy and such. I don't think of it that way. I believe that this is the time to to tackle things properly. Organic dairy farming is already largely self-supporting. Now we have to persevere!"

You don't feel the consequences of a disrupted raw material supply and the like?
"We also feel the consequences, because raw materials in our sector also come from the Ukraine. However, we have to be able to do without that. Due to the organic regulations, many organic dairy farmers are already more or less intertwined with organic arable farmers. we are sectoral organic land-relatedness, where people are used to making agreements about manure, but often also about feed. There are also organic dairy farmers who are completely self-sufficient and another part has made agreements about the feed with a feed supplier. Differences in impact can occur here to arise."

"This also fits in with a strategy to no longer allow everything that is common in our system. Organic dairy farming therefore strives to further phase out the small portion of conventional input. Proposals from the sector regarding manure and bedding, have not yet been taken over by the ministry for this year. We hope to take steps again by 2023."

"What does not help is that we are continuously confronted with the common thought (Bouma means: inspired by the thinking of conventional agriculture). For example, last week there was another letter at the Ministry of LNV with the request for a small part conventional in organic feed. That was not discussed with us at all. We have a system that works well, don't ruin it, I would say."

Where does such a request come from? From the feed sector?
"It seems that way. But driven by a few who are currently in trouble with a few essential raw materials. The vast majority have their affairs in order."

You sound very responsibly organic, but there are also companies in organic dairy farming that are more production-driven. Not all of them will endorse your view.
"We have a common interest within organic frameworks. The consequences for individual companies within these frameworks can differ greatly, but new insights and solutions can also arise in joint consultation. We are used to this in organic farming."

The measures to make the sector even more self-sufficient, and therefore less dependent on imports and the like, cost money. The organic milk price has risen less rapidly than the conventional one. Isn't that difficult?
"The organic milk price has also risen. Of course there is a balance between income and costs and therefore the development agenda."