Cows in Campos no longer munch sea grass

There used to be many more cows in Mallorca, as every town had its own dairy production. 

Campos in the south of the island was by far the biggest milk producer in Mallorca, accounting for 45 per cent of the total production.

Cows formed the socio-cultural identity of the town, and thanks to the development of windmills, the farmers were able to take advantage of the water from the natural park to irrigate their vegetable gardens, forage and alfalfa to feed their herds.

In time, this led to progressive salinisation of the aquifers, limiting vegetable and forage crop production, ultimately leading to the alternative of tourist development with the urbanisation of the coast. The emblematic beach at Es Trenc now attracts around 16 million visitors annually, which has a big impact on erosion.

Uses for Posidonia

Dairy farmers used to be allowed to remove a certain amount of Mediterranean sea grass (Posidonia Oceanica) from the beach each year to supplement bedding and forage supplies, but due to environmental protection of the fragile dune system this is no longer allowed in the natural park, so they either have to transport it from other beaches further afield, such as s’Estanyol, or buy in greater quantities of more expensive forage.

Campos thus offers a window on the agricultural and tourist development of the island. Visitors to the much-loved Es Trenc beach will in time no doubt appreciate these and other measures taken to preserve this natural paradise, which may curtail certain individual freedoms.