Stop the Green Deal, leave the EU, close the border with Ukraine. Farmers’ protests took place under such slogans not only in Poland but also in the EU. How the national agricultural policy should be formulated and how it should complement the Common Agricultural Policy. This topic will be discussed during the European Economic Congress, which will soon be held in Katowice. The “Farmer” editorial office will be there. We invite farmers.
- The 16th European Economic Congress (EEC) will be held on May 7-9, 2024 at the International Congress Center in Katowice.
- In the thematic block devoted to agriculture and food, we will discuss topics such as: sustainable Polish food, Polish-Ukrainian cooperation in the food industry, Polish food abroad and the Common Agricultural Policy and Polish agriculture.
- You can register for this year’s European Economic Congress at the link. We talked with Jerzy Buzek, former Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland and former President of the European Parliament, about the agricultural topics that we will discuss during the congress.
EEC is three days full of discussions on issues affecting Poland, Europe and the world. Recognized authorities, decision-making politicians, managers of large companies, entrepreneurs, experts, scientists, young activists, media people. We are only a month away from the 16th European Economic Congress in Katowice (EEC – European Economic Congress). Registration for the event is ongoing. One of the many topics of the congress will also be agriculture.
About the future of agriculture
The main topic in agriculture will be: “Repolonization of the CAP – is it a necessity? National agricultural policy in the context of the Common Agricultural Policy. Why should this topic be raised? The instrumental approach to rural areas in Poland ties the hands of decision-makers and distorts development plans for rural areas and agriculture. The Common Agricultural Policy concerns primarily agriculture and farmers. Only her so-called the second pillar concerns the countryside. Who is a farmer, are farmers the dominant group in the countryside? The agricultural problems of rural areas are loud, but this does not mean that they are accurately identified and adequately solved. And this is not the fault of the CAP, but of its “re-Polonization”, the way it is applied to Polish conditions. We hear the slogan that Polish agriculture “stands for family farms.” Is this a manipulation of the promoted image of a family farm, usually described as small or even very small? Given today’s scale of mechanization and progress in agricultural technologies, a family-operated farm can cover several hundred hectares. The family nature of the farm is determined by the type of its labor force and its area. Small farms in their mass are not commercial farms; these farms are disappearing. Is it a cardinal mistake to pursue a policy under the slogan that Poland is based on family farms? Poland must also take into account that Ukraine will join the European Union, which will change agricultural relations throughout the European Union and we must prepare for this. Will small family farms meet the requirements of new competition? How should the Polish countryside and Polish agriculture change and how should policies towards it be formulated and reflected in development programs?
Jerzy Buzek on protests and the green deal
One of the people who has been associated with EEC for years is Jerzy Buzek. This current MEP and former Prime Minister of Poland and former President of the European Parliament is happy to discuss agricultural topics and has interesting observations about them.
– Farmers are simply becoming poorer – answered Jerzy Buzek briefly when asked by Zbigniew Konarski from the wnp.pl editorial office, which is related to Farmer, about agricultural protests and the European Green Deal. – I would present it as briefly as possible as follows: we are in a state of war, the European Union perceives Russia’s aggression against Ukraine as a threat to itself in every respect. In this state, we in the European Union make decisions to help Ukraine. One of the elements of these decisions, apart from military and financial aid, etc., is also the opening of markets to Ukrainian products, not as it is done inside the EU with controls, not as it was done in the past with countries candidate to join the Community, i.e. gradually, only we opened up to the Ukrainian market quickly and this caused huge tensions on the European Union agricultural market – admits Jerzy Buzek. – We are in a specific situation. Namely, farmers in the European Union and in Poland have been losing income over the last two years because the prices of agricultural products are very low. I don’t want to go into details, but it is known that this is a threat to farmers, he adds.
Now we have a difficult situation on the entire European market. Farmers will simply become poorer due to the rapid and drastic opening of the Ukrainian market. Another policy element they don’t like is the European Green Deal. – Today, farmers are protesting, but in fact the green deal has not threatened them at all. Neither fallowing nor the limited use of pesticides or fertilizers has been introduced yet by the European Union. This, of course, awaits us and it is a temporary protest against the green deal. However, farmers actually have a terrible economic situation today, but the reason is Russia’s brutal attack on Ukraine – comments Jerzy Buzek.
The former prime minister is not surprised by farmers. – If they add to their current economic and financial situation what would await them after the introduction of the Green Deal, they say we can’t cope and that’s why they protest against the Green Deal, but in fact the reasons are drastically different and the biggest reason is this that we must properly open the market to Ukraine, we must prudently help Ukrainians in various ways, but not in the way we have done so far, he argues.
Multidisciplinarity of the congress
Europe and geopolitics. Climate, sustainable economy and environment. Energy – transformation and security. Digitization and new technologies. Investments and finance. Law and regulations. Industry, raw materials and fuels. Transport, infrastructure and mobility. Management, labor market and society. Education, science, innovation. City, region, metropolis. Healthcare. The thematic paths of this year’s congress, which include over 160 debates, leave no doubt – the diagnosis of the current economic, political and social situation is intended by the organizers to be insightful, substantive and touching on everything that is currently most important, determining the future of Poland, Europe and the world.
The European Economic Congress (EEC) in Katowice is a three-day series of debates, meetings and accompanying events with the participation of guests from Poland, Europe and the world, including: EU commissioners, prime ministers and representatives of European governments, presidents of the largest companies, scientists and practitioners, decision-makers who have a real impact on economic and social life. In an opinion-forming group, in the form of an open public debate, talks are held on the issues most important for the development of Europe.
You can register for this year’s European Economic Congress at the link.
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