Thousands of farmers in the Netherlands staged a national protest on Tuesday, in support of their industry.

At least two thousand farmers took to Dutch highways and roads on their tractors, in a slow procession toward the country's capital, The Hague. Some drove their tractors along the North Sea beaches that lead to the city.

It was a visible demonstration of their trade, but it also caused major traffic chaos.

The Dutch motorists association ANWB said the tractors, along with bad weather and accidents, made Tuesday the busiest ever morning on the nation's roads, resulting in more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) of traffic jams.

The Hague police said two farmers were detained, one who drove over a fence with his tractor and another who tried to stop police from detaining the first offender.

"The police respect that farmers are standing up for their interest and we're trying to facilitate this demonstration with hundreds of tractors as well as possible," authorities said in a statement.

Some of the tractors wound their way through The Hague

‘Our way of life'

Protesters say their industry is being unfairly singled out for nitrogen emissions that pollute the environment.

They also sought to counter the "negative image" farming and farmers have in the Netherlands.

"We are not animal abusers and environment polluters. We have a heart for our businesses," organizers wrote on one of the protests' websites.

Read more: Roughly 1.5 billion cows on the planet

The role of farming and sustainability has recently become a hot topic in Dutch politics.

"This is about our families, our future, the future of our children. It's about our way of life," sheep farmer and one of the protest's organizers Bart Kemp told the crowd gathered in The Hague.

On arrival, the farmers attended an event in the capital

To date, the government has not taken steps against farmers, but at least one political party has suggested that the Netherlands move to reduce the number of live animals its farmers keep.

Another plan would grant financial aid to farmers who cease their operations or adopt more sustainable agriculture practices.

Read more: Seaweed may reduce cow burps and methane emissions

Kemp said lawmakers lacked "the common sense — farmer's sense — that nature and animals teach us" and called for a "new era in which the food producers of the Netherlands are listened to" by politicians.

Agriculture Minister Carola Schouten said she supported farmers and pledged to listen to their concerns.

"We are working for a strong agricultural sector with an eye on a healthy environment," Schouten told the farmers.

According to LTO, the Dutch farmers' organization, the Netherlands has nearly 54,000 farms. Agriculture exports were worth some 90.3 billion euros ($98.3 billion) last year.

jcg/msh (AP, dpa, Reuters)

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? Tackling food insecurity with hydroponics The challenge of feeding a planet that’s set to have 3 billion more people on it by 2050 - made even more acute by climate change as some parts of the planet become wetter, while others drier - means the pressure is on to find ways to feed the planet. So farming has to become more productive – and new areas to grow, especially in dry climates, must be found. One potential solution: hydroponics.

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? Growing plants in the air Farming with little space and producing higher crop yields: hydroponics fits the bill. Though it may sound like something out of Star Trek, it's actually been around since the Aztecs – they built floating farms around the city of Tenochtitlan. Hydroponics essentially means growing plants without soil, and instead using a nutrient-rich solution to supply them with water and minerals.

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? Boosting yields With hydroponics, plants – usually supported by soil – are propped up artificially instead, and a nutrient solution is applied to the suspended roots using a number of different methods, including spraying them with a solution mist. Together with artificial lights, heaters and other equipment, the nutrient solutions help plants develop faster, produce larger yields and grow all year round.

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? Efficient hydroponics Hydroponics can recycle water, meaning it could use as little as 10 percent of the water a conventional farm uses – making it an option in arid environments. And the closed system means nutrients don't escape, cutting fertilizer down to as much as a quarter of what a conventional farm would use. Also, almost no pesticide is needed, since soil pests aren't an issue for plants grown without soil.

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? Planting vertically When growing sideways isn't an option, try going upwards: hydroponic growing trays can be piled on top of one another, and plants can be grown more closely next to each than in the soil, making it very efficient in terms of space. As for what kind of space they can grow in, the sky is the limit: with no need for scarce farmland, one possibility could be to have hydroponic farms in skyscrapers.

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? The downsides of hydroponics Running a hydroponic farm can be complex, energy-intensive and expensive. Plants require many essential nutrients, and the farm needs a large amount of equipment. Heat and light, supplied for free by the sun in conventional farms, have to be provided artifically and paid for. And power failures could mean whole crops are destroyed if they go too long without water and light.

Feeding the world of the future: is hydroponics the answer? Hydroponics on the rise Hydroponics can theoretically be used to grow any crop, although the technique lends itself best to plants such as cucumbers, salad greens, tomatoes, peppers and herbs. Given its long history, hydroponics still isn't widely used. But that looks set to change: the global hydroponic farming industry was estimated to be worth $21.2 billion in 2016. That's forecast to grow by 7 per cent each year. Author: Melanie Hall



Each evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.