The Netherlands is facing a set of serious interrelated environmental and economic challenges, some of which are developing to crisis levels. These challenges also impinge significantly on agriculture. With respect to agriculture, Phosphate, Nitrate, water and climate impacts present key environmental challenges. The preservation of biodiversity, landscapes, animal welfare and the use of antibiotics are also elements which could be added to the list. Given the multiple challenges and the need to adhere to the legal commitments of several sustainability and climate objectives, an integrated approach to addressing these challenges is needed. In other words, there is a need for policy optimisation. As a follow-up to their commitment to the Paris Agreement, the Dutch government took action by developing a national Climate Agreement (Klimaatakkoord). In order to provide more insights into the actions needed for the longer run (until 2050), a special study exploring different scenarios was issued, the main outcomes of which are presented in this article with a focus on the climate challenge. This study suggests that there is still considerable potential from both livestock farming and agricultural soils to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, even at the current scale of the agricultural sector.