Another large Norwegian company has become the target of protesters who blame it for furthering climate change. Oslo-based fertilizer firm Yara had to call in police to fend off around 500 demonstrators keen to shut down the company’s office near Hamburg.
The group known as “Free the Soil” is angry with Yara over its role as a major supplier to the agricultural industry. “We must reveal and stop destructive practice in industrial agriculture and at the companies that profit on it,” the group wrote in a letter to local newspaper Abendblatt earlier this week.
The demonstrators blocked the driveways into Yara’s fertilizer plant at Brunsbüttel in Germany. Police turned out in force to counter the roughly 500 demonstrators and keep the plant accessible.
“Yara respects that there are various views on what’s needed to feed a growing global population,” stated a company spokeswoman, calling the demonstrators “declared opponents of modern agriculture.” She claimed that Yara is keen to develop products and solutions that can contribute towards reducing the climate effects of agriculture for many years.”
Yara is the latest Norwegian company to be targeted by climate activists. State oil company Equinor is regularly targeted by Greenpeace, Bellona and other groups who want to halt more offshore oil exploration while Norsk Hydro recently drew complaints for polluting groundwater at its large aluminum plant in Brazil.
newsinenglish.no staff
