Giving farmers a reasonable income and ensuring that their farms are environmentally friendly are key objectives of the Common Agricultural Policy, which accounts for the largest share of the European budget. In practice, the support often disappears into the pockets of large, successful livestock farmers whose businesses emit significant amounts of nitrogen, such as pig …

How Europe is fattening a Dutch pig farmer who doesn’t play by the rules Read More »

Phosphate ceiling or not, Vreba Melkvee, the largest dairy farm in the Netherlands, continued to grow. During an environmental audit early last year, the company exceeded its provincial environmental permit. The municipality and province are aware of this, but shirk their responsibility. Meanwhile, Vreba receives tons of subsidies each year from the European Agricultural Fund, …

Green EU subsidy made largest Dutch dairy farmer even bigger Read More »