Last year, provinces paid out almost 37 million euros in compensation for fauna damage. That is more than 5 million euros more than in 2020. An important cause of this is the price increase of grassland that geese eat. The number of applications for allowances also increased by 12 percent, according to the implementing agency for the provinces BIJ12.
Fauna damage paid out rises to almost 37 million euros
Last year, provinces paid out almost 37 million euros in compensation for fauna damage. That is more than 5 million euros more than in 2020. An important cause of this is the price increase of grassland that geese eat. The number of applications for allowances also increased by 12 percent, according to the implementing agency for the provinces BIJ12.
Geese cause by far the most fauna damage, about 31 million euros. This damage to grassland mainly takes place in the provinces of Friesland and North Holland. A lot of damage occurs especially in the spring. Livestock farmers must then buy replacement feed for their livestock.
The compensation for grass is based on the costs that farmers incur to buy replacement feed, often in the form of corn or other grains. The amount of damage therefore depends not only on the amount of grass eaten by geese, but is also related to global commodity prices. The price of grass rose from 27 to 29 cents per kilo in 2021.
Grassland
The total amount of damage paid out in grassland amounts to almost 31.5 million euros. The damage to silage maize is the second largest loss with more than 1.1 million euros. In peer, more than 1 million euros was paid out in damage. And in winter cereals, the damage paid out also amounted to 1 million euros.
The greylag goose caused just under 19 million euros in damage, at number two is the barnacle goose with 7.6 million euros. In recent years, the damage caused by rooks to young maize plants has also increased. In 2019 this was about 83,000 euros, in 2021 it was almost 750,000 euros. This is partly due to a ban on the plant protection product Mesurol that has been in force since 2020. BIJ12 is researching the use of sustainable alternative products to prevent damage caused by rooks. The results are expected in the autumn of 2022.
The total compensation for damage caused by the wolf amounted to more than 46,000 euros last year. That is 0.13 percent of the total compensation for fauna damage paid out nationally.
Most damage paid out in Friesland
Most of the damage was paid out in Friesland, about 11 million euros. Flevoland closes the row with more than 197,000 euros in damage paid out. The figures relate to the period from 1 November 2020 to 31 October 2021. These figures show how much damage has been paid out to farmers, but that amount is not the total damage.
BIJ12 only pays compensation for damage caused by protected, native animal species. Damage caused by exotic species such as Egyptian geese, for example, is not included. Claims that do not meet the requirements for compensation or for which no application for compensation has been submitted for another reason are also not included in these figures.
Source: Nieuwe Oogst
