“The farmers are squeezed into this plan,” Agractie foreman Bart Kemp said after leaving the talks in Ermelo. “Permanent restrictions on land use are imposed, without an income model in return.” The Action Club is considering re-entering the consultation “if land policy guidelines are formulated”.
It concerns the government’s intention to convert around 180,000 hectares of agricultural land into natural or landscaped land. According to reporter Beekman, Agractie absolutely doesn’t want that to happen. “And they wanted a commitment on that today.”
But according to Beekman, Agractie wants to go too fast. ‘We sit around the table with various subjects: farmers, nature managers, the province and the minister. You start the conversation about the future of agriculture in the Netherlands. This should translate into an overall long-term picture. If you hammer on one aspect now and want an answer today, you can get angry and walk away. But then this is an unreasonable step.”
Making a distinction with the nitrogen debate
According to Beekman, Kemp mixes things up too. “We need to make a distinction between the nitrogen debate and the agricultural agreement. Now it concerns the agricultural agreement of Piet Adema, Minister of Agriculture. It concerns the perspective of agriculture in the Netherlands. When farmer organizations demand that 2030 be removed from the nitrogen law, they have come across the wrong place by Adema. For this they have to knock on the door of nitrogen minister Christianne van der Wal».
“We need to make a distinction between the nitrogen debate and the agricultural agreement. Now it concerns the agricultural agreement of Piet Adema, Minister of Agriculture’
Agriculture Minister Adema regrets Agractie’s move. He says the talks aren’t over. He would like to see the Farmers Action Group at the negotiating table again.