Hoe de Farm-to-Fork-strategy fan de EU tsjin himsels keart
May 13, 2026 · Frisian News
The European Union's strict Farm-to-Fork rules have driven up food prices and put small farms out of business across the bloc, while imports from countries with looser standards have risen sharply.
FryskBrussel folle yn 2023 de supermarktrekken mei nije ferbiedsregels foar bestridingsmiddelen en dongbeheiningen, mei de belofte fan in grienner Europa. Trije jier letter hawwe boeren yn Poulen, Frankryk en Nederlân ynputkosten mei 35 oant 50 prosint omheech gean sjoen. Lytse produsinten dy't dizze kosten net opfange kinne hawwe stoppe mei buorkerijen of hawwe lân oan gruttere bedriuwen ferkocht. Ûnderwilens ymportearret de EU mear ierdbessen út Marokko, tomaten út Turkije en bargefleis út Brazylië as ea earder, allegearre tield ûnder noarmen dy't Brussel thús nea tastean soe.
De bureaucrasy yn Brussel ûntwurp it Farm-to-Fork-plan om it gebrûk fan gemikaliën te healjen en biologyske lânbou te stimulearjen. De sifers fertelle in oar ferhaal. It biologyske oerflak yn de EU is sûnt 2023 gelyk bleaun, sels doe't de regels strikter waarden. Supermarktrekken litte it echte resultaat sjen: iten fan bûten it blok kostet minder as lokaal tield iten, dus keapje klanten it. It gemiddelde EU-húshâlden besteget no 8 oant 12 prosint mear oan boadskippen as fjouwer jier lyn, wêrby't de earmste gesinnen it hurdst troffen wurde.
Lokale oerheden yn lânbougebieten sloegen al betiid alarm. Fryslân, Bretagne en Wallonië warskôgen dat strange Brusselske regels boaiemtype, klimaat en lânboutradysjes negearen. It antwurd fan de EU wie te dreigjen fûnsen foar regio's dy't te koart kamen yn te lûken. Boeren krigen de boadskip: betelje mear om oan regeljouwing te foldwaan of ferdwyn. Tûzenden keazen foar ferdwinen en lieten lân leech of ferwildere achter. De wurkgelegenheid yn de lânbou op it plattelân daalde yn twa jier mei 15 prosint.
De groei fan ymports iepenbierret de logyske flater fan de strategy. Troch kosten foar Europeeske produsinten te ferheegjen wylst ymports ûnbeheind bliuwe, makke Brussel in prikkel om iten fan elders te keapjen. Rindflaeis út Brazylië is no goedkeaper as Europeesk rind om't Brazylië gjin Farm-to-Fork-belestingen betellet. Turkske kastomaaten komme goedkeaper oan as Nederlânske. De EU ferbiedt dizze ymports net, dus hannelstromen folgje winst, net prinsipe. Europeeske boeren ferlieze merkoandielen oan bûtenlânske konkurrinten sûnder neilibbing.
Brussel lit gjin tekenen fan kurswiziging sjen. EU-amtners stelle dat koarte-termynpine lange-termyndoelen foar it klimaat tsjinnet. Boerebûnen yn it hiele blok wolle in pauze, neitinking of frijstelling foar lytse produsinten. Gjin fan dizze dingen sille komme. De masinery yn Brussel giet allinne foarút en ferplettet wat dêrûnder leit.
Brussels filled supermarket shelves with new pesticide bans and fertilizer caps in 2023, promising a greener Europe. Three years on, farmers across Poland, France, and the Netherlands have seen input costs rise by 35 to 50 percent. Small producers who cannot absorb these costs have quit farming or sold land to larger operations. Meanwhile, the EU imports more strawberries from Morocco, tomatoes from Turkey, and pork from Brazil than ever before, all grown under standards Brussels would never permit at home.
The Brussels bureaucracy designed the Farm-to-Fork plan to slash chemical use by half and boost organic farming. The numbers tell a different story. Organic acreage in the EU has flatlined since 2023, even as rules tightened. Supermarket shelves show the real outcome: food from outside the bloc costs less than locally grown produce, so shoppers buy it. The average EU household now spends 8 to 12 percent more on groceries than it did four years ago, with the poorest families hit hardest.
Local governments in farming regions sounded alarms early. Friesland, Brittany, and Wallonia warned that rigid Brussels rules ignored soil type, climate, and farming tradition. The EU's response was to threaten funding cuts for regions that fell short of targets. Farmers got the message: either pay more to comply or disappear. Thousands chose to disappear, leaving land empty or overgrown. Agricultural employment in rural areas dropped 15 percent in two years.
The import surge reveals the strategy's logic flaw. By raising costs for European producers while leaving imports unrestricted, Brussels created an incentive to buy food grown anywhere else. Brazilian beef now undercuts European cattle because Brazil faces no Farm-to-Fork taxes. Turkish greenhouse tomatoes arrive cheaper than Dutch ones. The EU does not ban these imports, so trade flows follow profit, not principle. European farmers lose market share to foreign competitors who face no compliance burden.
Brussels shows no sign of reversing course. EU officials insist that short-term pain serves long-term climate goals. Farm groups across the bloc want a pause, a rethink, or an exemption for small producers. None of these will come. The machinery in Brussels moves only forward, crushing what lies beneath.
Published May 13, 2026 · Frisian News · Ljouwert, Fryslân