Overview
- The 10th Senate in Leipzig ruled that parts of Bavaria’s fertilizer regulation require revision because key criteria were only set in administrative guidance.
- In one of the joined cases, the court declared the regulation ineffective for the affected area after finding the chosen nitrate monitoring site was not credibly justified.
- The court cited insufficient regulatory detail to meet constitutional protections for property rights and professional freedom.
- Bavaria’s agriculture ministry said the current designation of red and yellow areas is lifted and the redesignation process is paused, while other provisions remain in force.
- Under the existing framework, farms in red zones may apply only 80% of usual nutrient needs, with roughly 17% of Bavaria’s farmland designated as such areas.