Agriculture Denmark to tax methane emissions from cows and pigs in future

Denmark is the first country in the world to introduce a tax on farting and belching cattle and pigs. A corresponding non-partisan agreement was reached in parliament, the government in Copenhagen announced on Monday.

The state will provide financial support to affected farmers. According to the agreement, methane emissions from animals are to be taxed at 300 kroner (40.20 euros) per tonne of CO2 equivalent from 2030. The amount is to rise to up to 750 crowns by 2035.

At the same time, considerable tax relief is planned for farmers. This will reduce the actual costs for them to 120 crowns per tonne of CO2 equivalent from 2030 and then to 300 crowns from 2035.

The tax is part of an agreement for more sustainable agriculture that was concluded at the end of June by representatives of the government, livestock associations, industry and trade unions. The agreement on the taxation of methane emissions from livestock still had to be approved by parliament.

According to a 2019 international study led by the Rowett Institute at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, a single cow emits 70 to 120 kilograms of methane per year. This greenhouse gas is many times more harmful to the climate than carbon dioxide and is the second most abundant in the atmosphere.

"We will be the first country in the world to introduce a CO2 tax on agriculture," said Denmark's Climate Minister Lars Aagaard on Monday. The tax is intended to contribute to the country's climate neutrality by 2045. In Denmark, more than 60 percent of the land is used for agriculture, mostly intensively. Denmark is one of the world's largest exporters of pork.

SDA