Viterra Polska has been involved in the logistics of agricultural products since 1997. The company uses international experience on the Polish market to help farmers sell surpluses to areas with high demand. This is important because surpluses have been constantly increasing for years and, according to forecasts, they will continue to increase. Therefore, Viterra is implementing numerous investments, including: in warehouses, railways, modern, ecological solutions that will allow the export of surpluses in grain production and meet market requirements.
The winning tender for the lease of the Grain Terminal in Gdynia is also an opportunity to increase Polish exports and connect Polish farmers with foreign markets, which will give them new development opportunities. Viterra Polska has been supporting them for a quarter of a century – how will it do it now?
Investments in Polish agriculture are a permanent element of the company’s activities. Recently, it decided to expand its warehouse network to increase the efficiency of receiving and releasing goods to up to 5,000 tons per day.
„Better storage options mean shorter queues at purchasing stores, which in turn improve the efficiency of the crop sales process. Polish farmers know how important it is during the harvest period. Such investments are part of a broader strategy, the effects of which are visible in the Lublin region, where our rapeseed and soybean processing plant in Bodaczów is located. Thanks to close, long-term cooperation and support, we have contributed to improving agricultural practices and the overall development of farms in Poland. – notes Adam Turoń, member of the management board of Viterra Polska.
The progress is confirmed by the Central Statistical Office data: rapeseed production in the Lublin region increased from 97,566 metric tons on 44,160 ha in 2010 to 383,281 metric tons on 128,414 ha in 2020. The development of Polish agriculture will most likely lead to an increase in production in the short term. The company is an important part of the global supply chain and has access to sales markets unavailable to many other entities. Thanks to this, it is able to manage the upcoming surplus and, above all, ensure food security. However, this requires appropriate infrastructure.
Viterra Polska is planning bold investments in the railway to increase capacity from 300,000 to up to 1 million tons per year. It is also a response to the increasingly frequent voices of farmers and new regulations regarding green transport. Farmers are looking for low-emission solutions and companies that can provide them. Viterra has been leading Polish agriculture into a sustainable and technologically advanced future for years, and the planned investments only confirm the natural direction of the company’s development.
In the previously mentioned plant in Bodaczów, an innovative turbine set generating electricity in cogeneration was launched in 2022. This allowed us to reduce overall CO2 emissions by 2,000 tons per year. Additionally, a new dust removal installation was introduced, which absorbs 150 tons of dust and gases annually. The total cost of the above investments is PLN 23.7 million.
Green projects to be implemented include, among many others, the construction of a 2.5 kWp (kilowatt-peak) photovoltaic farm in Bodaczów and the expansion of the Grain Terminal in Gdynia. It – together with the terminal in Gdańsk, for which a tender was recently announced – has a chance to significantly strengthen Polish food security and the sale of agricultural products. Poland also faces political opportunities and challenges: the new government is an opportunity to orient the economy towards exports.
„Even before the restrictions were introduced, we used all available export capacity to increase the sale of crops to foreign markets. Unfortunately, we encountered many limitations related to the poor capacity of the existing infrastructure. To further increase the competitiveness of Polish farmers, the development of port and railway facilities will be necessary. The Grain Terminal in Gdynia will be key here. We plan to invest PLN 200 to 250 million in it” – emphasizes Turoń.
The Viterra Group, together with an independent operator, will be responsible for the lease of the grain terminal in Gdynia after winning the tender in November last year. It is an important transhipment point for agricultural products, and thanks to the development of infrastructure and ensuring free access for all entities, it has a chance to develop even further. Moreover, Poles will not have to worry about food security and may even benefit from the upcoming surplus.
The company’s current and future activities are focused primarily on benefits for Polish farmers. Thanks to modern infrastructure and advanced technologies, the company constantly strives to create tools to support and develop the Polish agricultural market. The Grain Terminal in Gdynia is to become the latest addition to this type of projects.
