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October 25, 2021 – 3:51 pm clock
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Linstow (dpa) – Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania’s Agriculture Minister Till Backhaus (SPD) has asked for more money for farmers so that they can better integrate climate and species protection into their work. The EU’s previous proposals are completely inadequate, said the SPD politician on Monday at the farmers’ day in Linstow (Rostock district). The minister criticized 30 euros per hectare for diverse crops as too little. “You can’t earn anything with that, it hardly compensates for the effort or the reduced income.” The president of the state farmers’ association, Detlef Kurreck, demanded: “We finally need practical measures”.
Backhaus cited a planned 100 euros per hectare for not using synthetic chemical pesticides or 40 euros to compensate for difficulties for areas with a higher protection status, such as the NATURA 2000 areas, as further examples of insufficient rewards. The Common European Agricultural Policy (CAP) failed to take farmers with them and to motivate them to adopt alternative forms of farming. On the other hand, the Minister praised the introduction of a mandatory state animal welfare label in Germany at the urging of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The farmers also received support from Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig (SPD). People in cities should know better where their food comes from. Schwesig agreed that the country will financially support the planned digital computer-aided fertilization in the country. That is currently being discussed. Farmers are partners in climate protection, said the head of government.
Kurreck sharply criticized the federal policy in action against African swine fever. Germany needs a national crisis team. “The situation is out of control in Saxony and Brandenburg,” said Kurreck. The fight against the animal disease is a nationwide matter. “We are also fighting for Westphalia,” said Kurreck, referring to the significantly higher animal populations there. On Monday, the State Forestry Agency in Western Pomerania began building a second ASP protective fence along the approximately 80-kilometer land border with Poland. The state is providing 5.8 million euros for this.
At the Farmer’s Day, around 600 farmers from the northeast gave advice on current agricultural policy issues such as climate protection, animal welfare and the protection of grazing animals from wolves. “Our top priority is to secure the farmers their income,” said Kurreck. The farmers also kept their doors open for the new coalitions in the state and federal government.
The conference was also marked by the 30th anniversary of the interest group, which has around 1900 member companies. These cultivate 60 percent of the agricultural area in the northeast, which comprises a total of 1.35 million hectares. Around 18,000 people work in the north-east in the agricultural sector.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 211024-99-719251 / 6
Source: DPA
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