EU Approves Scheme To Close 3,000 Dutch Farms

On Tuesday, the European Union approved a scheme from the Dutch government that would forcibly shut down 3,000 farms inside the Netherlands — and would also permanently ban farmers from starting new farms elsewhere in the European Union.

The governing branch of the European Union (EU), the Brussels-based European Commission, has officially announced its support for Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s scheme to forcibly purchase land from thousands of Dutch farmers — which is part of an effort to meet the EU’s radical climate change agenda goals.

European Commission vice president Margrethe Vestager celebrated the decision, claiming that it will help the environment while ignoring the obvious negative effects it would have on food production and the lives of the farmers.

“The schemes will improve the environmental conditions in those areas, and will promote a more sustainable and environmentally friendly production in the livestock sector, without unduly distorting competition,” Vestager claimed.

The scheme will give the farmers an initial chance for a “voluntary” buyout, where they will be offered up to 120% of the value of their farm — but accepting that deal includes the caveat that they must agree never to open another farm elsewhere within the EU, including the Netherlands. The government will also offer dairy, pig and poultry farmers 100% of the value of their farms if they choose to shut down.

However, the Dutch government plans to quickly move to forcibly closing farms if not enough farmers voluntarily give up their livelihoods.

The Blaze reports: “The Dutch government plans to offer one-time voluntary buyouts to the farms emitting the most nitrogen with the goal of purchasing and shutting down 2,000 to 3,000 farms. However, if not enough owners voluntarily sell, the Dutch government is prepared to move forward with ‘compulsory purchases’ to meet its EU climate targets.”

The cost of this program is estimated as 1.4 billion euros, which is just a fraction of the 25-billion-euro plan to reduce nitrogen emissions.

In a previous announcement, Nitrogen Minister Christianne van der Wal warned that the “wildly attractive” voluntary offers were the final decision, and that “no better offer” was coming.

Dutch commentator Eva Vlaardingerbroek blasted the “vile” move in a post on Twitter.

“The EU has given the Dutch government the green light to buy out 3000 #DutchFarmers offering them 120% of the market value, ‘incentivizing’ them to sell ‘voluntarily’ (if they don’t, they’ll be expropriated later). Oh, and they won’t be allowed to start over elsewhere in the EU,” she wrote.

Vlaardingerbroek then accused the Dutch government and the EU of putting “a knife to the farmers’ throats” by ensuring that they cannot renew their licenses — as the government is already paralyzing their businesses with additional regulations.

She went on to note that the government is essentially offering the farmers a “bribe” that they will feel pressured to agree to “out of pure desperation.”

“It’s all so vile,” Vlaardingerbroek stated.

She also compared the requirement that farmers cannot start over elsewhere in the EU to the tactics of the Soviet Union.

“I also highly doubt that prohibiting them to start over elsewhere in the EU is even legal. The whole idea of the EU was supposed to be about freedom of movement and freedom of workers. This is some next level USSR stuff,” Vlaardingerbroek said.

All of this comes after the BoerBurgerBeweging (BBB) movement, or the Farmer-Citizen Movement party, won a massive victory in the Dutch elections earlier this year — with the government’s authoritarian crackdown on farmers being largely responsible for the victory. The party began as a protest movement, but soon became a political force in the elections — gaining 17 seats and pushing out the radical leftist majority.

Dutch farmers have been protesting the government’s climate alarmism for some time, gathering in large numbers with tractors and blocking the roads to demand that the government stop its authoritarian crackdown on farming.