Less livestock in northwestern Europe?

Analysing discourses and drivers behind livestock buyout policies

Direct intervention in the size of livestock herds is not considered a main option in European agricultural policies nor in policy option studies. Nevertheless, livestock buyout schemes have been announced by governments in recent years, most notably in the Netherlands and in Flanders (Belgium).

This article contributes to the scarce literature on this policy instrument by sketching the characteristics of different types of buyout schemes. We analyse how the issue is being framed on the political agenda in four EU Member States characterised by having high livestock density regions: The Netherlands, Belgium (Flanders), Denmark, and Germany.

While in all these countries there is a reproduction of a ‘technology versus volume’ discourse, the ‘nitrogen crises’ in the Netherlands and Belgium fuelled the reframing of concerns with livestock sizes in localised terms rather than as an issue of global climate change. When introducing new buyout schemes, the pre-existing institutional frameworks leave a clear mark on the policies adopted. In times of political crises, existing policies to close farms were reinforced and the systems of nutrient rights offered the opportunity to take production out of the market. Notwithstanding the adopted policies and available budgets, the issue remains highly controversial in the implementation phase.

Authors

PBL Authors
Daan Boezeman
Other authors
David De Pue
Morten Graversgaard
Stefan Möckel

Specifications

Publication title
Less livestock in northwestern Europe? Analysing discourses and drivers behind livestock buyout policies
Publication date
15 August 2023
Publication type
Article
Page count
8
Publication language
English
Magazine
EuroChoices
Issue
22(2)
Product number
5193