Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel announced additional supports and subsidies for conversion to organic farming during a visit to the biodynamic Kass-Haff farm in Rollingen yesterday together with Agriculture Minister Fernand Etgen and Environment Minister Carole Dieschbourg.
During his visit, Minister Bettel noted that while Luxembourgers consume more organic products than other nations, relative to population, the country ranks very low in terms of production.
"To remedy this situation, the government decided to support more organic farming in order to encourage more farms to organic production," said the prime minister, noting that in addition to a substantial increase in premiums for agriculture, the government has also decided to subsidise partial conversion to organic farming.
Thus the plans envisage a potential for farms to operate mixed organic and conventional methods for different production areas, for example to produce organic eggs and conventional dairy.
"Extensive agriculture is also synonymous with greater biodiversity or less polluted groundwater" said Prime Minister Bettel. "So it's in everyone's interest. It is for this reason that the government is actively working to increase organic farming.”
Fernand Etgen emphasised the many roles of agriculture. ”Alongside food production and landscape maintenance, agriculture plays an important pedagogical role. Thanks to educational farms such as the Kass-Haff farm, consumers appreciate the value of the agricultural sector again and develop a sensitivity for regional food production."
Carole Dieschbourg emphasised that organic farming is a model to follow and plays an important role in the preservation of our natural wealth. It must therefore be supported more by the government.
With respect to partial conversion, the Minister emphasised that this is an intermediate step and that the purpose of the transition should be to encourage the full transition to organic farming.
