While the market is relatively stable now, what isn’t as stable is the relationship between farmers and governments across Europe. The Netherlands is the world’s 2nd biggest exporter of dairy products by value and its dairy industry is a source of great national pride. However there have been major farmer protests since summer 2022 after the current Dutch PM Mark Rutte committed to halving overall nitrogen emissions by 2030.
The government plans to reduce herd numbers by a third and a significant proportion of farms throughout the country face the prospect of compulsory buyouts. These plans have been met with a ferocious backlash from frustrated farmers fearing their livelihoods will be wiped out by force from the government. It has led to the formation of a new political party called Farmer-Citizen party.
This political movement has gained huge popularity in rural Netherlands and the protest movement has gathered a lot of sympathy from people throughout the country. The party took 15 seats (20% of the vote) in provincial senate elections back in March which is a phenomenal result for a brand-new political party. This demonstrates the movement has gathered a lot of momentum and Netherlands will be a litmus test for all the political pressure throughout Europe to reduce emissions and cut herd sizes. There were also big protests in Belgium back in March from farmers who took to the streets of Brussels to voice their anger over similar plans in Belgium to reduce emissions. Hundreds of tractors were driven into the heart of the EU capital Brussels which is a symbolic location for the protests to occur. The protests won’t stop any time soon so it will be fascinating to see if the political movements will gain enough traction to take power in some European countries over the next few years.
Catherine’s role is Technical Assistant and she is one of the newer members of the Ingredient Solutions team. Catherine recently graduated in Food Science and Innovation at WIT and is motivated, positive and enjoys working in a team. Catherine says, “I always see the good in every challenge that approaches me as they can lead to opportunities to learn more.” She is looking forward to focusing on the areas that she can control and learning how to perfect them.
Ted is the Factory Manager, he is the man that keeps everything running smoothly, supporting production and technical operations. He ensures that all the machinery within the factory functions at maximum efficiency and is properly maintained.
Suma has worked for Ingredient Solutions for two years as Technical Manager – leading the technical team. Before working for Ingredient Solutions, Suma worked in Asia, the Middle East and Europe and has over twenty years experience in management and leadership in food and other industries.
Pina is our UK Sales Support Administrator and has worked for Ingredient Solutions since 2012. She works alongside Gary Davies and the sales team providing them with sales information and supporting the team especially when they are on the road. Pina works remotely for Ingredient Solutions from her base in Luton in the UK.
Marek is based near Lublin, that’s not a typo we don’t mean Dublin, he’s our man on the ground in Eastern Europe.
