Denmark is set to introduce Europe’s first carbon tax on agriculture as part of a new historic agreement that will see it cut 70% of its total emissions by 2030.
As part of the agreement, farmers will have to pay 120 Danish krone per metric ton of emitted carbon dioxide from 2030; this amount will rise to 300 krone from 2035.
In turn, the Danish government plans to set aside 140,000 of lowland by 2030, buy out specific farms to reduce nitrogen emissions, and to provide €5.3 billion to reforest 250,000 hectares of agricultural land by 2045.
Speaking on X, Denmark’s Economy Minister Stephanie Lose commented that it’s an “agreement which will form the basis for a historic reorganization and restructuring of Denmark’s land and food production.”
Denmark is a prolific pork and dairy exporter, with agriculture forecast to account for 46% of emissions by 2030. This carbon tax is believed to slash 1.8 million tonnes of that in 2030.