The Netherlands last month witnessed the largest protests by farmers in decades. They were sparked by a court ruling and subsequent government plans to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions. Because agriculture accounts for 70% of domestic nitrogen oxide emissions, measures aimed at reducing livestock populations seem inevitable.

The Netherlands’ highest court, the Council of State, ruled that the Dutch system for granting building and agricultural permits violated the European Union Habitats Directive by failing to mitigate damage from nitrogen oxide deposition. The ruling put all permit applications on hold. The government therefore declared that livestock farms near vulnerable nature reserves should be relocated, bought out on a voluntary basis, or rendered more sustainable after repair of damaged conservation areas.

It is rare for farmers’ protests in Europe to arise from nature-conservation issues rather than socio-economic concerns. They are indicative of bigger questions about the compatibility of modern intensive agricultural systems with environmental and climate ambitions. Other EU member states with nitrogen surpluses could soon face similar policy dilemmas.

The Dutch government is committed to a gradual transition from intensive farming to ‘circular agriculture’, in which nutrient cycles would be closed. Such major structural changes have suddenly become a real possibility for agriculture across Europe too.