Policies for the Future of Farming and Food in the Netherlands
The Netherlands has built an agricultural sector that is a world leader in productivity and competitiveness. But environmental challenges have grown increasingly urgent and the sector will have to adjust. A recent court ruling on nitrogen pollution has set the stage for a transition towards a more environmentally sustainable path that will be difficult and contentious. Leveraging the strong innovation capacity of the sector will be key to finding long-term solutions that work for farmers, citizens and the environment.
Policies for the Future of Farming and Food in the Netherlands takes stock of the current situation in the agriculture sector. It applies the OECD Productivity, Sustainability and Resilience (PSR) analytical framework along with the latest data from the OECD Agri-Environmental Indicators to benchmark the country’s sustainable productivity performance and to identify the main challenges facing the sector, and make suggestions for a possible path forward.
Implementation of the 2015 recommendations
This chapter finds that the Netherlands has taken actions that fully or partially address about 80% of the recommendations made in 2015. The innovation system remains a world leader and effectively translates R&D resources into results on the farm. The system is stronger than it was eight years ago thanks to action to improve funding sources, research infrastructure and institutional arrangements. It benefits from a defined vision for the future and associated long term goals. The connection between actors in the agricultural knowledge system has been improved by better integration of research, education and extension. A key challenge is ensuring that the innovation system is as effective as possible in targeting issues of public importance such as environmental sustainability.
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