Cooperative helps Frisian farmers with land purchase

Frisian farmers who want to buy extra land for extensification, but cannot afford the financial picture, can turn to Land Cooperative Riches. Yesterday (18 May) the cooperative was officially presented, but the first land has already been purchased. Several farmers and private investors have also come forward. Rabobank, which supports the initiative, reports this in a press release.

The cooperative wants to 'restore the balance between the ecological and economic-agricultural potential of land by attributing financial value to ecological interests'. The initiative was established with the help of Regio Deal Natuur-Inclusive Landbouw, LTO Noord, NAJK, Boer & Natuur and Rabobank. Half of the financing for the land comes from the farmer and the other half from private investors through the land cooperative.

The financing also provides the investor with a return, reports Wealth on the website: "As an investor you receive a 1% compensation on the invested capital. You also benefit from the increase in value (an average of 2% to 5% per year in the past ten years). In addition to the compensation for the capital, you are a co-entrepreneur, because you 50% profits from the profit sharing for the possible carbon rights. The return is therefore considerably better than saving, more stable than investing and above all better for the climate!"

Don't act green and stand red
Initiator and dairy farmer Pieter van der Valk, says in the press release: "Land is expensive, so there must be a return on it. That forces the farmer to intensive cultivation, which is not always good for nature. green and then red. The land is purchased together with the land cooperative and in this way we reduce the financing costs for the farmer and protect nature."

The dairy farmer came up with the idea when he was planning to buy a piece of land himself. "That is a considerable investment, and in order to recoup this, I am actually forced to work the soil intensively, for example with potatoes or flower bulbs. That is a shame, because there are many meadow birds in this area. I think it is my moral duty as a farmer to protect those birds, which means that you sow herb-rich grassland, mow it later and do not cultivate intensively. So that costs money, but it does not immediately generate extra income."

Protecting nature and maintaining a business model
The land cooperative should help farmers with a better revenue model. Van der Valk: "With this we show that nature-inclusive farming is financially feasible. We bring farmers and people together, and together they draw up a development plan for what the area will look like. It is a joint investment and a shared responsibility to protect nature. and to maintain the farmer's business model."

For the time being, the aim is to jointly purchase land throughout Friesland. Van der Valk: "It would of course be fantastic if the land cooperative was also a national success."

Linda van Eekeres

Linda van Eekeres is co-writing editor-in-chief. She mainly focuses on macro-economic developments and the influence of politics on the agricultural sector.

l.vaneekeres@boerenbusiness. Nl

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