Normally, we accept stricter environmental requirements from ecologists - but here we must warn about the consequences.

This opinion piece was originally published in Jyllands-Posten on August 18th. By: Richard de Visser, chairman of the Fruit, Berries, and Vegetables Committee, Organic Denmark. Sybille Kyed, political chief, Organic Denmark. Danish vegetable production is under pressure from competition from cheaper imported products. Currently, this is mainly due to the high wages we have in Denmark. However, it may soon turn out to be the least of the problems for the future of vegetable production. Political efforts are underway to change the rules for fertilizer allocation in Denmark. And as it looks right now, these rules could threaten the very existence of Danish vegetable production. Usually, organic farming is the voice that highlights the opportunities in new, stricter environmental regulations to create a different and better agriculture. But for once, we find it necessary to also raise the alarm. The new fertilizer regulation is based on theoretical model calculations. And with the chosen calculation method, growing onions could mean that producers are attributed an environmental burden from the fertilizer, close to the amount of fertilizer applied on the field. We should pause This issue should cause any responsible politician to stop and request a review of the basis for the calculations to ensure they are scientifically sound and to conduct a proper impact assessment of the new rules. It is a fundamental principle of organic farming that we should not negatively impact the environment. Therefore, we have not only chosen to avoid using pesticides but also to use less fertilizer than conventional farmers. According to the new calculation model behind the rules, organic farmers have a smaller leaching loss than our conventional colleagues. Moreover, several organic farmers have collaborated with dairy producers so that their vegetable fields are part of a rotation with the grasslands used by dairy cattle. This is a good system and a fine example of how livestock production and plant cultivation for humans can go hand in hand, creating a healthy and resilient farming system that does not harm our environment. In the new leaching calculator, however, this will not benefit vegetable producers. They will be held responsible for the entire nitrogen value in the clover-grass field that the dairy farmer had the previous year. So regardless of how vegetable producers organize themselves, they will have to set aside 2–6 hectares of grass or fallow land for every hectare of vegetables they grow to comply with the rules. With the land prices in Denmark and the rent that a vegetable producer would have to pay to maintain their production, it is clear to everyone that vegetable production will become very expensive. An ill-considered basis Danish vegetable production accounts for only 0.4% of Danish agricultural land. Of this, just over one-third is organic. Surely, this limited area justifies pausing and revisiting the calculation model to ensure the necessary data for vegetable production is accurate, so that solutions can be found before the rules are rolled out for vegetables, ensuring that Danish vegetable production is not unjustifiably and thoughtlessly shut down. We at Organic Denmark do not support delaying the implementation of the new nitrogen regulation. The environment and our water resources have paid too high a price for the way agriculture has developed. But when it turns out that a vegetable producer can be responsible for a nitrogen loss that is roughly equivalent to what has been applied to the field, we believe it is our duty to pull the emergency brake. The new nitrogen rules are designed to create regulations that are more scientifically grounded and closer to reality than the current rules. However, there is a significant risk that the outcome will not reflect reality, which could lead to a large, unfortunate, and unnecessary cost if we continue to produce vegetables in Denmark. Yes, some have even called for increased production, which may prove difficult to achieve in the near future.