Farmers protesting across Poland! Introduction of an embargo on agricultural products from Ukraine?

For the past few weeks, farmers in many EU countries have been taking to the streets and demanding, among other things, the complete abandonment of the EU Green Deal because they fear the consequences of its introduction. They do not want, for example, a regulation on the following of 4 percent of land. They are also demanding a ban on the import of certain goods from Ukraine and tighter controls on those entering the EU. 

In addition to these demands, farmers from various countries are adding further problems specific to their market to be solved. Farmers in France, the Netherlands, Greece, and Poland are battling taxation, livestock reduction programs, flood aid, and fur farming maintenance.

Farmers have already succeeded in winning an amendment on pesticide reduction proposed as part of the Green Deal. EU countries were to reduce pesticide use proportionally, regardless of the level of use in agriculture. Under pressure from farmers' protests, the European Commission withdrew a draft on this issue from further legislative work, meaning there will be no such regulation shortly.

Polish farmers discussed their demands last week with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Czesław Siekierski. In many aspects, the head of the Ministry of Agriculture agreed with them but at the same time stressed that it would not be possible to "close" the entire Green Deal. At the same time, the minister announced that the Polish side is negotiating a bilateral agreement with Kiev to establish rules that would determine the size of quotas of individual goods that can enter the Polish market from Ukraine so as not to affect its stability.

The European Green Deal is a package of policy initiatives. It aims to put the EU on the path of ecological transformation and, ultimately, to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. The package includes initiatives in closely related areas, e.g., climate, environment, energy, transport, industry, agriculture, and sustainable financing.

Farmers stress that the influx of cheap food from Ukraine into the European Union is ruining their business. Agriculture Minister Czesław Siekierski recently said that so many frozen raspberries from Ukraine had entered Poland that Polish farmers could no longer produce them. The politician claimed that Poland, in talks with Ukraine, is trying to introduce limits on certain food products entering Poland.

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