Edward Majewski

The International Competitiveness of Polish Agriculture

This article considers the international competitiveness of agricultural production in Poland. Competitiveness was measured in terms of domestic resource cost (DRC) ratios for three farm sizes and eight commodities. The results highlight that for the period 1996 to 1998 Polish crop production was more internationally competitive than livestock farming. The most internationally competitive crops of those analysed were rapeseed and potatoes. During the period, however, international competitiveness worsened as international commodity prices fell. There is an inverse relationship between DRCs and farm size. This is an important result as Polish production is relatively fragmented and the degree of structural change has been slow.

Impact of the CAP "New Greening" on economic results of the Polish farms

After a long debate between political bodies of the EU, the final decision about the shape of the CAP in the next programming period has been made. The initial proposal of the European Commission was very ambitious yet, after the announcement of its final version, there is a common belief that green requirements have been watered down. This paper presents the results of impact analysis based on the most recent proposition of the CAP reform with a special focus on “greening” of direct payments. It evaluates changes in economic results of the Polish farms in the perspective of the year 2019. For the analyses, the authors proposed an original farm typology using data taken from 10,890 farms from the FADN sample in 2011. Farm optimisation model with PMP technique was applied to estimate potential effects of the reform for 218 types of the Polish farms. Farm model results were up-scaled to the country level. Results show that the majority of the Polish farms already complies with the new requirements. Adjustment of remaining farms to the new requirements will have a negligible impact on income generated by the Polish farm sector.

MIEJSCE I ROLA ROLNICTWA W PRODUKCJI ENERGII ODNAWIALNEJ W POLSCE I UE

The study attempted to assess the importance of agriculture in the process of renewable energy development in Poland and the EU. It was pointed out that, despite the large production potential, the share of agriculture in the production of renewable energy is relatively small in many countries, including Poland. It was stressed that a special role in the process of renewable energy production in agriculture can be played by agricultural biogas plants. Production of agricultural biogas is not only a way to generate renewable energy but also a manner for reduction of methane emissions, usually taking place when manure is stored on the farm. This is particularly important from the point of view of the EU’s climate policy. The experience of many countries shows that the growth in importance of renewable energy, particularly in the early stages of development of specified technology depends on the support by public funds. Available statistics suggest that the EU Member States present very different approach to the policy of RES support. In some EU countries (including Poland), a large part of public funds is directed to support “traditional” energy based on fossil fuels.