Organic growers on Samsø say long waits for municipal permits to build rainwater reservoirs are deepening drought losses and could force them to cut back production of Danish fruit and vegetables.
DR reported on August 14, 2026 that Danish production of strawberries, carrots and potatoes risks falling if growers do not get faster permission to irrigate. The report centers on Samsø, where two vegetable growers are still waiting for answers from the authorities.
Hester Callaghan has run the organic farm Yduns Have with her husband since 2018. According to DR, she says the farm has been hit by three drought periods in nine years, including the spring and summer of 2026. She told the broadcaster that access to more water is decisive for the farm.
The farm’s proposed solution is to clean out and enlarge an existing basin by at least 25 percent. Deepening and widening the pond would let heavy winter rainfall be collected and stored for irrigation the following season. As reported by DR, this would be done without drawing water from the sensitive groundwater.
The application was sent to the authorities in October 2025. Ten months later, no decision had arrived, DR reports. Callaghan says excavators need to start this fall for winter rainfall to be used in 2027, and that a permit arriving in March would come too late.
Part of the farm’s organic potato crop has already been discarded because of drought and insufficient irrigation, per DR’s reporting. Callaghan says the losses could potentially affect everything grown on the farm, from lettuce to strawberries. Without better irrigation options, she says, the farm must accept lower quality or scale production down.
Second grower has waited 18 months
Elsewhere on the island, vegetable grower Jens Christian Kjeldahl has waited about a year and a half for an answer on a permit for another rainwater basin. As noted by DR, he links the political goal of more Danish fruit and vegetables to the need for water. Without it, he says, quality and yields suffer and imported goods win out.
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At SEGES Innovation, the agricultural sector’s knowledge center, chief consultant Søren Kolind calls faster approvals a necessary part of climate adaptation. According to DR, he is in contact with at least 20 farmers facing problems obtaining permits for rainwater reservoirs. The advisory firm Velas backs the call and asks for smoother cooperation between farmers, advisers and municipalities.
Responsibility for the permits on Samsø lies with Aarhus Municipality under a municipal cooperation agreement. Civil engineer Stine Elmholt Andersen of the city’s Technical and Environmental Administration says the cases are complex and can require several permits. These include water abstraction, rural-zone permission and a dispensation under Section 3 of the Nature Protection Act.
DR states that it sought an interview with Minister for Urban, Rural and Housing Affairs Signe Munk of SF, but that this was not possible. In a written reply, she said she understands the frustration when an application drags on. Munk noted that municipalities handle rural-zone permits and stressed the need for dialogue between municipality and applicant.
