How are farmers going to continue to fight for their future? Will they get off the streets? How do they view Ukraine’s presence in the European Union? These questions are answered by Grzegorz Majewski, a farmer from the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship.
The situation in agriculture is becoming more desperate every month. The protesters emphasize that they are fighting not only for their existence, but also for the entire society, because so far few people realize how far the provisions of the Green Deal are and how much they will complicate the lives of not only farmers, but also the proverbial Kowalski.
Farmer: What will happen after March 20?
Grzegorz Majewski: There are no details yet. Protests are reported for 30 days, so we can suspend them at any time and take specific actions. However, we secretly hope that the situation will normalize by then – we cannot be deceived forever.
Changes to the Green Deal have been announced – but this is a step forward. Does this mean that you can wait for decisions to be made at the national level?
Regardless of what decisions are made, either at the national or international level, we will take to the streets on March 20. If we get specific details by now, it will be a protest in the form of a happening. We don’t care about making a fuss, but about expressing our dissatisfaction, talking and negotiating. In such a substantive, specific fight. For now, we don’t feel taken seriously. We are promised specifics and then the phone goes silent. There is talk of setting a meeting date within 24 hours, and then there is a week of silence. This is not serious treatment. We expect specifics. We are aware that not all proposals will be acceptable to us, we do not have to agree, but we expect constructive dialogue and decision-making in cooperation with us. We all see what the omission of us on key topics led to. We asked the Prime Minister not to make promises he cannot fulfill. We don’t need the wool pulled over our eyes.
What does the plan for March 20 look like?
We want to give society one day off. That’s why the protests are planned from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. If we started later, some people would have time to leave for work or school and would get stuck in traffic jams.
It is hard to expect that when we say: listen, we did this especially for you, these blockades especially for you, that we will be met with enthusiasm. But we appeal to society to stay at home during this time, come out to us, spend this time with us, because we are really fighting on behalf of everyone. Use this day as a day with a farmer, get to know us, our work, listen to our message.
Some of the protests will be in towns, at crossroads where you can drive and stop, and I really encourage the entire society to simply come to us. We will have leaflets and fruit prepared. Use this time to talk to us about what awaits us, but also what awaits the entire society.
We are coming to the topic of the Green Deal, which will affect the entire society. You talk about it a lot.
The Green Agricultural Deal is one thing. However, the topic itself is much broader, more complex and affects virtually all of us. Combustion cars will soon cease to be produced, very serious restrictions are being introduced on home heating and great requirements on the thermal modernization of buildings. These are issues that affect each of us. And there will be even more of these changes, which is why we must speak loudly about it, because our opposition, the “no” we are saying now, is actually on behalf of the entire society. We, as farmers, feel it now, but people should be made aware that the issue is much broader and that soon we will all feel the problems related to the provisions of the Green Deal. We cannot accept further absurdities that will turn our lives upside down. First, there was an order to mention the so-called stoves for eco-pea coal stoves, now we hear that further changes will be necessary. There was a huge campaign related to heat pumps, now we hear that they are not entirely OK because they contain some harmful factor. We fall into a vicious circle. A huge revolution is being prepared for the entire European society, for which we are absolutely not ready. Well, on the one hand, electric cars, but realistically it is impossible. We are not prepared for this in terms of energy – let’s imagine a block of flats. Small for 30 families. At least one car in each apartment. How to charge them? There are no such possibilities. We will not be able to build sufficient infrastructure by 2035. And we need to talk about this today, otherwise we will fall into the trap once again. Therefore, when talking about the Green Deal, we cannot limit ourselves only to matters that affect agriculture.
The Green Deal will affect us all
Taking into account the restrictions imposed by the Green Deal on agriculture, one conclusion comes to mind – the complete destruction of the competitiveness of European agriculture compared to non-EU countries.
Unfortunately, this is what it looks like. We feel very cheated in this situation, because on the one hand, very high requirements are imposed on us, and on the other, the market is opening up to incredible amounts of goods from outside the European Union that do not meet the standards. Maybe in this situation we, as farmers, can impose penalties on the European Union? We have hard evidence that we are at a loss. Maybe, then, file a class action lawsuit for compensation from the European Union? We have been constantly told how important ecology and healthy food are, and at the same time such decisions are made.
We cannot compete with non-EU countries, primarily because we are bound by very clear frameworks within which we can operate. Production costs outside the EU are much lower and this is due to many reasons.
We are aware that being on the European market, the stock exchange determines the prices of our products. We are aware that closing the border will not cause prices to increase overnight, but we must expect some specific solutions that will balance this situation. What is killing us the most now is the high production costs. And it’s not just about fertilizers or the price of fuel, but also about the stringent standards that our equipment must meet. This significantly increases production costs. Healthy competition is only possible when we all have similar starting conditions and similar requirements. If we have the same level of requirements, we still have a chance. However, when these requirements are so extremely different, we have no chance.
We are constantly talking about Ukraine. Should Ukraine join the EU?
Absolutely not. This is what we fear the most. Everyone wants to bring Ukraine into the European Union almost now, without any transition periods. For us, this means the destruction of our agriculture. Ukraine’s production capabilities are enormous. They produce cheaply, in large quantities and not necessarily healthily. However, we are aware that over time Ukraine will begin to produce according to our standards, regardless of whether it is in the EU or not. First of all, there was a lack of technology. There were and are very large farms, but technologically they are behind. Ukraine had a very big problem with repeatability, but it quickly makes up for it. This is clearly visible – the country is engulfed in war and has record rates of wheat production. Standing on the border, I saw agricultural equipment being transported east. This is very expensive equipment, but still not as expensive as ours – there are no AD Blue or DPF requirements, which gives a price advantage of several percent at the start.
Ukraine is arming itself agriculturally. They bring very efficient equipment, which, combined with good soil and rapid technological development, will mean that we will not be able to compete with them in any way.
Ukraine has purchased almost all sugar beet seed material, and we hear that construction of processing plants is starting. They are really growing into an agricultural power. Ukraine has a grudge against us as Poland. I don’t know why, but Ukraine sees Poland as the greatest evil that has happened to it, and at the mere mention of compensation and grain subsidies to eliminate the surplus, it threatens us with complaints to the WTO, but there is no talk about the fact that Ukraine receives subsidies. to be resumed, rebuilt or created from scratch in breeding. And these are very high stakes.
Some time ago we subsidized Ukraine for afforestation. We sent seedlings of trees, vegetables and fruit trees. We have created competition for ourselves abroad.
Add to this an inefficient system and the problem is ready. The terrifying thing is that we, as farmers, needed a few days, a few weeks at most, not even a few months, to show the entire pathology of this entire system that is there. Two years have passed since the outbreak of the war and neither the previous nor the current ministry is able to do anything about it.
The situation is very difficult, but it also shows how much we must unite.
Farmers must act
There is great strength in a united group. Of course, as long as this group works efficiently. I understand that you have a clear plan for the future?
We must act not only actively, i.e. go on strike, but also passively, i.e. educate society. We will set up a website and make our own information spots, because we are aware that the message does not reach the entire society.
What is extremely important in all this is that these are bottom-up initiatives. We are not unions, we have no leaders, we have no chairman, we have no structures, we are all equal. Every voice is equally important, is heard and is taken into account. We have representatives because we know that we cannot all be everywhere, but it is all based on mutual trust and the feeling that only together we can achieve something.
We have created working groups that will work on solutions because the government expects us to present specific solutions during the talks. These groups include people focused on specific areas, so that the solutions developed are as specific as possible and meet the needs of a given sector. We consult the things we have developed with various universities and experts.
We want to undertake meetings with farmers and city residents. Such meetings are already starting to take place in various municipal centers – we organize festivals, picnics, we invite these people to our place to show them what Polish agriculture means and, above all, to show people where food comes from.
We are also considering the form of protests. We partly want to move them to politicians’ houses. On the one hand, we wonder what the MP’s or senator’s child or what the MP’s or senator’s wife is to blame for making their lives difficult. On the other hand, what is my child’s fault that soon I will have nothing to live on? I think we pay too much attention to what someone won’t like, but no one looks at us. So we will also take such actions. If necessary, we will build towns in front of the Sejm, in front of the KOWR, in front of MPs’ houses, in front of offices, and in front of the Agency for Restructuring and Modernization of Agriculture.
We will not let ourselves be forgotten until we manage to reach a compromise that will allow us to function normally.
Thank you for the conversation.
