Martin Stichnoth gladly accepted the invitation, which has become a tradition, to the Casino Klein Wanzleben. Gert Zender, State Secretary in the Ministry of Economics, Agriculture, Forestry and Tourism, was also invited. The approximately 30 farmers who had come to Klein Wanzleben were welcomed by the Chairman of the Farmers' Association, Urban Jülich, as well as the guests.
In the short speeches by Gert Zender and Martin Stichnoth, both addressed current issues in the district and in the Ministry, and expanded on these to include topics relating to agriculture. The State Secretary emphasised the current challenges in EU agricultural policy and also at federal level. In the district, it is a big task to rehabilitate the district roads and here one is always dependent on the local farmers, as new regulations and subsidy guidelines often demand a widening of the roads and thus a loss of valuable arable land, Martin Stichnoth described.
The farmers had brought many questions for the politicians from the district and the country and there were lively discussions until well into the evening.
Topics such as road closures, loss of land due to construction work on district roads and the future handling of the valuable commodity of water were among those discussed. Especially with the latter, everyone agreed that availability should be planned supra-regionally and with foresight over several years.
Pictures: Marius Denecke, Bauernverband Börde e.V.