Copenhagen, Denmark

Denmark may become the first country in the world to charge carbon taxes on livestock and cattle, which may cost farmers about 672 kroner ($96) annually. The tax will be levied from 2030 on the carbon emissions from livestock like cows and sheep as proposed by the coalition government.

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Denmark is a major producer of dairy and pork. According to the European Commission report of 2022, a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in Denmark come from the agriculture sector, which is highest among other sectors.

Livestock is one of the major contributors to global emissions according to various reports, with cows and other animals producing the greenhouse gas methane through their manure and burps.

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"With today's agreement, we are investing billions in the biggest transformation of the Danish landscape in recent times," said Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen in a statement on Tuesday, according to a CNN report.

Livestock carbon emissions

According to Concito, Denmark's green think tank, the cattle population in Denmark emits 5.6 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year. The tax is aimed at reducing the carbon emissions from the livestock industry of the Scandinavian country.

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The tax will be levied on emissions from livestock with a 60% tax break applied. Farmers will be charged 120 kroner ($17) per tonne of livestock emissions for the first five years starting from 2030 and the tax will rise to 300 kroner ($43) in future.

Danish farmers are opposing the implementation of the tax as they believe this agreement will not solve the problem of climate but rather is a bureaucratic move by the government. 

“We recognise that there is a climate problem… But we do not believe that this agreement will solve the problems because it will put a spoke in the wheel of agriculture’s green investments,” Peter Kiær, chairman of the Danish farmers’ group Bæredygtigt Landbrug, said in a statement.

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Livestock tax in New Zealand

New Zealand was the first nation to propose the "burp tax" in 2022. Like Denmark, New Zealand relies on livestock for its economy and people. This proposal sparked outrage and protest by the agricultural industry of New Zealand as they argued it would impact their livelihood severely.

After the centre-right coalition came into power, the plan was scrapped as the country's new government plans to explore other avenues to reduce methane emissions.