Behind the geraniums instead of in the meadow or stable? The future for Dutch farmers is turning pitch black due to the lack of creativity in the nitrogen plans of the Dutch cabinet. They are aimed at stopping, if necessary forced. While the construction sector and increasingly also the chemical industry is eager for bio raw materials.
“Many farmers are not eager to be bought out and retire with a lot of money,” says innovation manager Jan Kadijk of the Dutch Green Building Council (DGBC), an umbrella organization that promotes environmentally friendly construction, in the daily newspaper Trouw. He would rather see farmers continue working on the land, by switching from food production to growing crops for construction: cattail, flax, straw, willow or fiber hemp.
The DGBC thinks that the government is offering farmers a 'guaranteed price' for the sale of sustainable crops to convince them. “In this way, the billions that the government now wants to spend to buy out farmers will be better spent.”
Biobased construction is becoming increasingly mainstream. Large construction groups are taking the first steps. This often involves wood, but BAM recently also launched the first homes made of straw.
Previously, there were also various initiatives to stimulate the cultivation of agricultural crops for the construction and chemical industries. The government responded evasively.
