Food standards watchdog NVWA has removed 59 severely neglected cows from a farm in Leeuwarden, after inspectors found them living in filthy conditions.

The 65-year old owner had a total of 99 cows on the farm, despite being told by a court last year she could keep no more than 40.

The farmer was warned in January about the state of the animals’ barn which lacked dry and clean straw and this week in transpired nothing had been done to improve the situation, the NVWA said.

The farmer has now been banned from buying any more animals for the next six months.