A court in Utrecht has ruled that the Ministry of Agriculture may make farm data public. Agricultural organisations, including LTO and POV, brought the case after the ministry decided to release information about farms.
In 2023, environmental organisation MOB asked the ministry for data on all farms, including the number of animals, stable information and details of crops grown. The ministry initially refused the request. However, then Agriculture Minister Femke Wiersma decided in February that the information could be released.
LTO, POV and other agricultural groups challenged that decision in court. They argued against making the data public.
The court ruled that the public interest in access to the information outweighs concerns about farmers’ privacy. According to the judge, the interest groups did not provide sufficient evidence that farmers would be seriously harmed if the data were disclosed.
“The court rules that the interest groups have insufficiently substantiated that the farmers will be seriously disadvantaged if the data are made public,” the court said.
The ruling is in line with a decision by the Council of State in a separate case last year.
@anp | NEWS BRAINPORT
