Strike for higher prices
Polish potato growers take to the streets
Some 2.000 Polish farmers will take to the streets in Warsaw on May 23 to go on strike. For example, they hope to force higher prices for their potatoes, onions and other vegetables from the government. The months-long negotiations have yielded nothing, which has hardened the debate.
Unia Warzywno Ziemniaczana: The Union of Potato and Vegetable Growers calls on Polish farmers to demonstrate in Warsaw on Wednesday 23 May. The union expects to get around 2.000 farmers on their feet. The demonstrators march through the streets of the capital to the office of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.
Quite a package of requirements
The producer association has met with the agriculture ministry of Poland for 2 months, without any success. It has a laundry list of requirements it wants to see answered. Some of the spearheads are increased support for farmers, an open market that is on a par with Western Europe and strict penalties for 'recycling' food.
It is not the first time that the union has gone on strike. This has already happened in several other Polish cities throughout the country. "We have been negotiating with the ministry since March, without any results," said chairman Michał Kołodziejczak. "All we are told is that we must not go on strike and that we should take an example from French farmers. They strike in a 'friendly' way."
No trust in ministry
In a response, the ministry said that the dialogue should not be fought in the street, but in the office. On May 9, it said in a statement that it would stand up for negotiations, but only when the strikes stop. The union no longer has confidence in the influence of the ministry of agriculture on national politics and is going to 'visit' the prime minister itself.
Kołodziejczak: "What started due to the dissatisfaction of potato and vegetable growers has now grown sector-wide. Pig and dairy farmers are also dissatisfied with the policy. Cheap food is imported and sold in supermarkets under the Polish label. low quality because it is never checked. Traders are not interested in selling Polish products."
One producer organisation
If it is up to Kołodziejczak, a new producer organization should be established. All agricultural sectors must be united in this. "This is how we gather the people who have the courage to defend the rights of Polish peasants." In their own words, this new organization has now received broad support from all over the country.
The new organization has sent the Prime Minister a letter with 23 points on which the government must take action. In addition to an equal subsidy scheme (or complete abolition in the European Union), and more controls on the import of agricultural products, the ban on ritual slaughter and fur farming and the relaxation of hunting are also mentioned.
If it is up to the farmers, Polish products should always be at the front of the store, the country closes its borders with Ukraine and opens the way for export to Russia and Europe. The ministry has given no sign that it is taking the demands seriously.
Niels van der Boom
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.