Plans For UK’s Largest Dairy Farm Withdrawn
Plans to set up the UK’s largest dairy farm in Lincolnshire have been withdrawn by applicant Nocton Dairies. The company has now formally withdrawn its application for planning permission to build a 3,770 cow dairy farm at Nocton Heath due to the response of the Environment Agency, which has maintained its objection to the proposal.
The Environment Agency’s grounds are lack of information about risks posed to the aquifer underlying the site and uncertainty about the extent of the benefits associated with the change in land use. According to Nocton Dairies, despite its best efforts to address these concerns, including an additional investment of £4m in engineering the management of the waste to unprecedented standards, lack of relevant research has made it impossible to provide the reassurances required by the Environment Agency that livestock farming is an appropriate use of land at the site.
Nocton Dairies has stated that it will not be selling its farm at Nocton and is currently considering its options.
