Agriculture ministers agree on new fertilizer model

The agriculture ministers of the federal states have agreed on a regionalization model for the future rules for fertilization in agriculture. Accordingly, the current red areas, which only allow limited fertilization when there is high nitrate pollution, should be eliminated. They should be replaced by regional solutions from the federal states that take greater account of the polluter pays principle, as the chairwoman of the Conference of Agriculture Ministers, Bavaria's department head Michaela Kaniber (CSU), said.

Criticism from water suppliers

The move has met with criticism from water suppliers and nature conservation groups. “Water protection needs uniform rules nationwide,” says a statement from the Association of Municipal Companies (VKU). The association members are primarily municipal utilities, which, according to the association, supply 90 percent of the population in Germany with drinking water.

“Nobody is interested in endangering our number one foodstuff - especially not our farmers,” said Kaniber. The German Nature Conservation Association (Nabu), on the other hand, fears more bureaucracy.

“What appears to be flexibility threatens to become a bureaucratic monster that does more harm than good to groundwater protection,” criticized Nabu expert Phillip Brändle. Around one in ten companies in Germany manage land across federal state borders. If countries set different requirements for fertilization in the future, companies would have to comply with different rules, deadlines and documentation requirements depending on the location of the areas.

Old regulation overturned

The new regulation is necessary after the Federal Administrative Court upheld a lawsuit brought forward largely by the Bavarian Farmers' Association and overturned the previous regulation with red areas.

Lower Saxony's Agriculture Minister Miriam Staudte (Greens) pointed out that a new regulation must be implemented quickly in order to quickly end legal uncertainty. Federal Agriculture Minister Alois Rainer (CSU) was satisfied with the compromise reached: “We are strengthening water protection and the polluter pays principle and at the same time complying with EU requirements.”

When it comes to the question of animal welfare-friendly stable conversions, Kaniber spoke out in favor of consistent support for farmers. “If you want food security, you also have to enable livestock farming,” she emphasized. Anyone who makes higher demands must also make it possible for companies to implement them.

According to the industry, farmers currently often feel trapped in a jungle of approvals because, for example, open stables are good for animal welfare, but their approval is difficult in terms of environmental and building law. A proposal to guarantee 20 years of protection for stable conversions reportedly failed due to the Green Party's agriculture ministers.