- The administrative authority is making significant strides in supporting the agricultural community.
Farmers in Schleswig-Holstein are about to breathe a sigh of relief. Minister President Daniel Günther received a round of applause for his nine-point plan during the State Farmers' Day in Rendsburg, after building up anticipation by Farmers' President Klaus-Peter Lucht. The primary relief point for agriculture and the state government is a decrease in red tape. "There's an excessive regulation in numerous aspects of life in Germany, which bothers numerous individuals," stated the CDU politician.
Farmers will experience relief in various ways, such as in hedge maintenance. In the future, farmers will be allowed to trim back lateral growth every three years, starting from September 15 instead of October 1 as before. Hedges can now be chopped completely until the end of February. Measures will be taken to address stubborn weeds in plant protection. The need to report fertilizers may only be done semi-annually. Pig farmers will be relieved as they no longer need a building permit for constructing outdoor areas.
A unified data portal for farmer-state communication was announced. This will streamline documentation and eliminate double entries. Günther addressed the several hundred farmers in the hall: "You're much more advanced in digitalization than we are, and it's downright absurd that it's often us who fail and you bear a more cumbersome bureaucratic burden."
The head of government also pledged to reduce documentation requirements for antibiotics, which are more stringent in Schleswig-Holstein than in other states. Günther assured the farmers that he would continue to work on these topics. "We aim to have as little bureaucracy in Schleswig-Holstein as possible." His previous pledge to champion agriculture remains in effect.
Food self-sufficiency urged
In his speech, the President of the Schleswig-Holstein Farmers' Association, Klaus-Peter Lucht, called for a different approach to the supply of local products. "We need food self-sufficiency," said Lucht at the State Farmers' Day, taking place alongside the Norla agricultural fair in Rendsburg. This is especially crucial in light of global crises, such as the war in Europe, to avoid potential empty shelves in the future.
When it comes to biodiversity or climate protection, there should be no contention between politics and agriculture, Lucht demanded. "There's only cooperation." Companies are already doing their part in these areas. Farmers also have business responsibilities towards their enterprises.
Lucht particularly called for further reduction in bureaucracy. "This must be scaled back again." Politics should have more trust in the well-informed individuals in agriculture.
Criticism from environmentalists
Criticism, particularly on future hedge regulations, arose from environmentalists. "If hedges can now be trimmed back laterally from September, we're concerned that machinery may get too close to the hedge during winter cereal sowing and harm these vital habitats for biodiversity," said BUND Schleswig-Holstein's chairman, Dietmar Ulbrich. The state government has yielded to the agricultural lobby's influence.
The following points were added to the relief measures for farmers: the requirement to report fertilizers semiannually, and the ability for farmers to trim hedges back laterally every three years starting from September 15 and chop them completely until the end of February.
In response to criticism from environmentalists about the new hedge regulations, Minister President Daniel Günther stated that the changes were necessary to reduce bureaucracy and ease the burden on farmers.
