Farmers keep their cows out of the meadow on Monday due to nitrogen policy

Initiators LTO Nederland and Team Agro NL say that a permit application to allow cows to graze in the pasture is ‘an unnecessary and absurd administrative burden’, which in practice will also be completely unworkable. “After all, grazing is different every year, depending on the weather, how well the grass is growing, the crop rotation and the swapping of land with others.”

‘Don’t apply for a permit every year’

With the #30MeiKoeUitDeWei campaign, LTO Nederland and Team Agro NL call on the government to prevent this ‘absurd’ outcome of the nitrogen crisis. “Farmers cannot apply for a permit every year, quite apart from the fact that permit granting is still stuck in the legal quagmire of nitrogen policy.”

Farmers are called upon to participate if it fits in with their business operations, for example when it comes to animal health and requirements for quality marks. “So there will probably be another cow in the meadow on May 30. The most important thing is that the government receives a clear signal: the nitrogen policy should not chase the cow out of the meadow,” the press statement said.

Less nitrogen in cows in the meadow

The organizations indicate that less nitrogen is emitted by grazing, and point to the Remkes Committee, among others. “That committee, the Ministry of LNV and the provinces have repeatedly indicated that grazing is part of normal business operations and that no additional permit should therefore be applied for. case.”

Less nitrogen in cows in the meadow

How about that? Farmer André de Groot previously explained this to RTL Nieuws: “Cows pee and defecate in one place in the barn. Pee and poo come together and this creates ammonia. Nitrogen ends up in the air, which is bad for our nature. .”

If the cows are in the meadow, you don’t have that. “A cow never pisses and poops in the same place. The poo and pee do not come together.” This reduces ammonia emissions.