Denmark Introduces ‘Fart Tax’ to Curb Emissions

Denmark, known as the dairy powerhouse, has decided to impose a carbon tax on farmers for the first time in the world. The so-called “fart tax” that is imposed depending on carbon dioxide emissions, is expected to levy approximately $107 per cow annually.

According to the Financial Times (FT) on the 25th (local time), the Danish government announced that it would impose a tax of 300 Danish kroner (about $43) per ton of carbon dioxide emitted by livestock such as cows and pigs starting from 2030.

From 2035, five years later, the tax is expected to increase to 750 Danish kroner (about $107) per ton of carbon dioxide.

The agricultural carbon tax aims to impose new taxes on all farms based on the emission of greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous oxide, thereby reducing emissions.

This shows the Danish government’s commitment to reducing carbon dioxide emissions from farms to achieve carbon neutrality. FT analyzed that if the agricultural carbon tax is converted based on the number of livestock, each cow will be taxed about $107.

The reason Denmark introduced the world’s first “fart tax” in agriculture is because it is the Nordic country with the highest greenhouse gas emissions. The country boasts a well-developed dairy and pig farming industry. Around 60% of the land is farmland with pigs being greater than the population in numbers.

According to an advisory group appointed by the Danish government, if the current state continues without intervention for carbon dioxide reduction, 46% of Denmark’s total greenhouse gas emissions are estimated to come from agriculture by 2030.

New Zealand, which has a similar industrial structure to Denmark, also decided to introduce an agricultural environmental tax on gases produced by livestock by 2025. However, due to opposition from the agricultural sector, the implementation date has been continuously delayed, and the original plan has been postponed until 2030.

The Danish government hopes that the introduction of the agricultural carbon tax will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.8 million tons by 2030. It also aims to reduce total carbon emissions by 70% by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

The Danish government also plans to provide farms with subsidies totaling 40 billion Danish kroner (about $5.73 billion) to transition to eco-friendly systems.