On Monday 8 April, the European Commission announced that it had authorised two Dutch schemes, ‘LBV’ and ‘LBV Plus’, under the national livestock cessation scheme (‘Landelijke beëindigingsregeling veehouderijlocaties’), totalling around €1.47 billion. The programme aims to reduce nitrogen deposits in nature conservation areas in the Netherlands. These measures will compensate livestock farmers for the voluntary, definitive and irreversible closure of nitrogen overloaded livestock sites that they operate in areas of the ‘Natura 2000’ network.
The €500 million LBV scheme is open to dairy, pig and poultry farmers. The aid will take the form of direct subsidies, intended to compensate up to 100% of the losses suffered by farmers who decide to close their breeding sites.
The LBV Plus scheme has a budget of €975 million. It will be open to operators of breeding sites that emit a high level of nitrogen per year, known as the ‘peak load’, and will be aimed at dairy, pig and poultry farmers, as well as veal farmers. The aid will take the form of direct subsidies, designed to compensate up to 100% of the losses suffered by breeders who decide to close their breeding sites (loss of production rights, demolition costs).
Farmers covered by the ‘LBV Plus’ scheme will be able to claim aid of up to 120% to compensate for the loss of production capacity. (Original version in French by Émilie Vanderhulst)