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Dancing with Horned Ladies World premiere + Q&A + SHORT
Documentary | Onno Gerritse | The Netherlands | 2013 | 54 min | Dutch spoken | English subtitlesVoorstelling: Sunday 24 March 16:45 | Studio/K 2
Unlike almost all Dutch dairy cows, those belonging to Jan Dirk and Irene van de Voort have not been vaccinated. Neither are they given antibiotics and their milk is not pasteurised. The Van de Voorts have chosen to reject all the rules of modern agriculture in favour of a radically different approach.
Of the 17,000 dairy farms in the Netherlands, 330 are organic. Of these, 15 do not give their animals antibiotics and one – the Van de Voort’s – makes cheese from unpasteurised milk. This makes them one of the few farmers who think outside the conventional agriculture box.
Jan Dirk used to have a 'normal' dairy business. He vaccinated and dehorned his cows. But he gradually lost confidence in the idea of artificially keeping animals healthy, in his own words because they were not in balance. So he and his wife Irene decided to work with nature rather than against it.
Their cows now have horns ('which are important for their metabolism'), soft healthy manure and a strong will. The disadvantage is that weak new-born calves 'just' die, as they would in the wild.
Although some people would dismiss Jan Dirk and Irene as alternative types, it is fascinating to listen to their experiences. And if Jan Dirk is to be believed, literally everything is better: the soil, manure, milk, cheese, the cows' health and above all, life in general.
A must-see film for anyone interested in alternative and progressive forms of agriculture.
Please note: This film is preceded by an FFF Short.
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I Kill Documentary | David White | New-Zealand | 2012 | 10 min | English spoken | English subtitles | NL premiere Steve 'Beatle' Tarrant kills livestock in New Zealand, and he does so on location. This is much less stressful for the animals, a fact Beatle takes great pride in. Not for those with a weak stomach, but nevertheless a fascinating look at an unusual profession. |
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