The European Union imposes further high requirements on our producers

Beefforum, i.e. the 11th International Beef Forum, and very distinguished guests from Poland and Europe. And probably even more important challenges of the entire sector. There were not many threats to the Polish meat industry as powerful as today. What exactly has been established?

We, as a beef sector council, a balanced beef platform, we are the main organizer of the forum and we really try to invite decision -making people together with real market participants, and secondly look for real solutions to problems that affect us. There are plenty of places where there is an endless discussion, and there are no effects of conversations. There are no balanced solutions.

Here, our entire sector very clearly articulates agricultural ministers and European Commissioners, real threats and presents specific solutions how we can better meet challenges.

And that there is clarity from the point of view of the average Pole: we are not working on strengthening the competitiveness of the Polish beef sector, we strive to transform production in the direction of sustainable production of low -emission, friendly to the climate with a guaranteed high -quality culinary.

We work to ensure the true food safety of every Pole. We speak on behalf of each of us.

How to understand this?

A resident of a large urban agglomeration does not think about where the food comes from, which goes to his table. He got used to that in the supermarket he has 30 types of sausages, sausages or ready steaks. In the restaurant he has a rich card card, from which he can choose a exquisite dinner with a completely different taste every day. Even in fast-food, this variety is powerful. But thanks to the hard, daily work of our native breeders, he has such a huge choice and such good food quality.

These very restrictive standards imposed by the European Union and reliably controlled by Polish state institutions mean that we have the safest food in the world. A completely different quality than what is eaten on other continents.

But this is not at all once and for all. If we introduce producers to our rear door to our market, who do not have to meet these criteria, first of all the quality of food can drop dramatically, and secondly we will lead to the fall of our companies and our farmers.

In both cases, these are actions to the detriment of the final consumer, i.e. the recipient in the city. I want to say it clearly and clearly: all the protests of farmers you hear about on television are actions in the interest of both the producer and the consumer. After all, I am a consumer myself and I want to eat healthy, tasty and I want to know that this food is from a source.

The Lord quickly went to the contract with South America and the problem of importing food from Ukraine.

Yes, because in the 30-year history of Polish food production has never been such a serious threat we have today. These are no longer jokes. This can realistically kill the Polish meat industry and Polish breeders. And ultimately lead to the fact that uncontrolled food production from the other end of the world will find our tables.

In the European Union, antibiotics and hormones are unacceptable in animal production, which are administered in Brazil or Argentina. There, the well -being of animals does not take care of the European Union.

And no one will care because they will not apply to such restrictions as Polish breeders.

What does this mean exactly?

For so many years, the European Union imposed on us very high standards, justifying the high expectations of consumers. Polish farmers meticulously adapted to them. They have become premium food producers for tables around the world, and with one decision of the European Commission we have to bear customs barriers for production that does not meet these high requirements.

Should we accept uneven competition conditions? Should we agree to exert dishonest price pressure to the economy industry, which has become our pearl in the export crown? We must be rational towards our interests. In few industries, we managed to conquer Western markets and earn fair money that flows from Germany to Poland, not the other way around.

We are all rich thanks to exports. And we have to give away markets for free, for which we worked for so long and hard? We are to continue to accept higher standards and thus higher costs when access to cheaper products opens, not meeting high requirements important as we were provided for the consumer. It’s absurd. We expect a common sense approach and Poland adopted such a position. And presents on the European Council forum.

Ukraine is also dangerous?

In Ukraine, agriculture is in the hands of unimaginably rich oligarchs and magnates. Their area and potential is incomparable to ours. Can you imagine a farm managing 200,000 hectares? In Poland, several thousand families persist on such an area.

The Lord himself also described the scale of corruption in this sector in his reports. We are not able to compete with such entities on equal conditions. And we do not want our consumers to get food that does not meet European Union standards. Ukraine should be helped during the war. You should strive to become an EU member as soon as possible. But this should be done with your head and rationally.

Ukraine’s entry into the EU cannot mean full access to agricultural products, but only after a long transition period. Otherwise, in the event of enabling the full -scale offensive of Ukrainian agricultural oligarchs to the common market, the model of European agriculture, family farms will be devastated in an unequal fight. By giving them our agricultural markets, we do not help to win wars of Ukrainian citizens. We help even more enrich the narrow group of oligarchs.

I am not surprised by the emotions that prevail in the countryside. Because people who have devoted their whole life to build their own business and the highest quality agriculture feel that they are devoted to their achievements in the name of completely different groups from completely different countries.

So the common agricultural policy presented by the European Commission is also not the dream?

It is probably Minister Czesław Siekierski said that the changes must be evolutionary, not revolutionary. We have created a model of agriculture extremely consumer and environmental in the European Union. Extremely safe. We pay extra for our food at the same time affordable for every recipient and to ensure food safety, so that we are self -sufficient. And suddenly we are to turn it all upside down.

The crisis associated with coronavirus clearly showed us that food safety is not given once and for all. The supply chains can be interrupted from day to day. If we are not self -sufficient, in such a basic need as providing food, it will be a total failure of our country. But above all, a failure for the whole society.

The future of the common agricultural policy must mean justice and sustainable development. For everyone. Producers, breeders and consumers. Also in environmental issues.

And what are the EU plans for your sector?

Today, few people in public space talk about it, but farmers supplying products to commercial networks will hit the ricochet through the so -called ESG reporting. A large part of our industry is not completely prepared for this. (ESG is an abbreviation: E – environment (Environmental), S – social responsibility (social responsibility) and G – corporate governance (Corporate Governance – ed.).

In 2022, the European Commission adopted a directive in this respect, which entered into force last year and the first reports of sustainable development will appear in the present. Banks, commercial networks, including food, large food companies covered by the reporting obligation adopted the ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement Zero Net emissions in 2050.

Polish suppliers will, in practice, have to show a drastic reduction in coal trace, and in practice, in practice, they will choose those producers who will be able to boast of appropriate CO2 emissions. This can completely overturn the market. Not immediately, because the reduction will go slowly about 4 % a year, but effectively.

I am afraid that due to the lack of adequate communication, the lack of good solutions under the strategic program for the common agricultural policy we can sleep the period of adaptation to the new requirements and wake up with the proverbial hand in the potty.

What does this mean in practice?

For large commercial networks, the main component of coal trace are products that they sell on the shelves. So they will ask their suppliers to limit the carbon trail. Suppliers will therefore turn to food processors, and they will be to farmers.

The first years will be pollining reporting, technical issues, setting diagrams. And then a great game will start to play about who will offer a product with the lowest carbon trail. Even at the cost of the price. If we are not able to demonstrate the reduction of coal trace and report this reduction as part of ESG reports, we will fall out of the market.

Polish platform of sustainable beef In cooperation with the Balice Zootechnics Institute, the State Research Institute has been preparing practical solutions and tools used in the Polish QMP sustainable production quality system for several years. There is a catalog of low -emission practices and a coal trace reduction calculator. We did not sleep this period of preparation, we are ready, our farmers already have required to use at least one good low -emission practice and this year we will increase to two.

We correspond with MRiRW and try to convince you to motivate farmers to reduce high -quality emissions by properly modified ecoschemat. We can be a leader in the production of low -emission beef in Europe.

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Karol Wasilewski