The Danish government will introduce Europe’s first carbon tax on agriculture, after a five-month negotiation with farming and conservation groups ended in a historic agreement on Monday night.
From 2030 farmers will have to pay 120 Danish krone (€16) per metric ton of emitted carbon dioxide equivalent, rising to 300 krone (€40) from 2035 onwards. The government will also provide €5.3 billion to reforest 250,000 hectares of agricultural land by 2045, set aside 140,000 of lowland by 2030, and buy out certain farms to reduce nitrogen emissions.
It’s an “agreement which will form the basis for a historic reorganization and restructuring of Denmark’s land and food production,” wrote Economy Minister Stephanie Lose on X on Monday evening.
Copenhagen is a pork and dairy export giant, with agriculture forecast to account for 46 percent of emissions by 2030. Experts believe the carbon tax will slash 1.8 million tonnes of that in 2030, its first year of operation, enabling Denmark to meet its target of cutting 70 percent of its total emissions by that year.
Negotiations began in February between the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, the Danish Society for Nature Conservation, the Danish Food Federation (NNF), the Danish Metal Workers’ Association, and the Confederation of Danish Industry.
The five associations are now urging lawmakers to approve the deal, which should be reviewed and adopted after the summer holidays.
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