Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0295/02954.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 27KB | 471 lines

$Unique_ID{COW02954}
$Pretitle{362}
$Title{Poland
Agriculture}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Lech Kurpiewski}
$Affiliation{Polish Embassy, Washington DC}
$Subject{pgrs
farms
production
food
polish
agriculture
state
economic
hectares
poland}
$Date{1990}
$Log{}
Country:     Poland
Book:        Update on Poland
Author:      Lech Kurpiewski
Affiliation: Polish Embassy, Washington DC
Date:        1990

Agriculture

     After World War II Poland has become an industrial-agricultural country.
More than a half of the population's earnings is spent on food and close to
40% of the population lives in rural areas.

     Poland has comparatively large cropland resources. In 1984, there was per
capita 0.4 hectares of arable land and orchards in comparison with 0.19
hectares in Austria, 0.34 hectares in Czechoslovakia and 0.12 hectares in the
FRG, but down from 0.51 hectares in Denmark, 0.47 hectares in Finland and 0.5
hectares in Hungary. However, the area of farmland is decreasing at a
relatively fast rate due to a high rate of population growth, new construction
and development of industry and road network.

     In the years 1970-1980 agriculture lost close to 600 thousand hectares,
and in the years 1981-1986 an additional 85 thousand hectares of land.

     Soils which are predominantly podzol or inferior agricultural quality,
cover 72.5% of Poland's total area. The average longtime precipitation is 600
mm with large regional differences. The precipitation in the period of plant
growth and development is most frequently insufficient, especially in the
central and northern parts of Poland.

     Most of the farmland (72%) is used by private family farms. In socialized
agriculture state farms (PGR) use 19% and farming production cooperatives
(RSP) and farms belonging to agricultural circles-about 4% of land.

     The agrarian structure of individual farms has not undergone any major
changes in the recent decades, although at the end of 1970s and beginning of
1980s there was an acceleration in the rate of decrease of the number of
farms. At present, we are witnessing the trend towards polarization of farm
size manifest in the increase of the share of the smallest units (0.51-2
hectares) and the largest (above 10 hectares) at the cost of farms from 2 to
10 hectares. The average area of arable land per one family farm in 1986 was
5.1 hectares and varied depending on the country's region. The most dispersed
farming is found in southeastern Poland, where the majority of private
farmland is spread like a checkerboard. This "cropland checkerboard" is the
result of historically shaped divisions of land. Now, a majority of owners of
these types of farms work outside agriculture while working their small plots.
Poland's eastern part faces the biggest problems in cropland management
because of the migration of young people to towns. The poorest soils there are
being aforested and preferential conditions have been created for setting up
new farms.

Supplying agriculture with machines and means of production

     Recent years have brought significant progress in farming mechanization.
In 1950 there were 28 thousand tractors in use in Poland and in 1986 their
number increased to 990 thousand. The area of arable land per one tractor
amounts to ca 19 hectares. Although farms are relatively well supplied with
tractors, Poland still has a big number of horses and the horseherd is
decreasing at a much slower rate than in other European countries. In 1986 it
amounted to as many as 1.3 million horses (in 1970-2.6 million).

     The supply of tractors and farming machinery is generally better than the
supply of other means of production. A drawback of Polish farming
mechanization is insufficient range of products. Lack of certain auxiliary
machines for tractors is the cause behind ineffective use of tractors.

     In 1980 the use of mineral fertilizers amounted to 193 kilos NPK per one
hectare (in pure component), but in the ensuing years it decreased due to a
drop in fertilizer production.

     Now the 1980 level of fertilization is being gradually restored and the
use of mineral fertilizers for the 1987 harvest amounted to 192.1 kilos
NPK/hectare. The consumption of soil lime is also on the rise. For the 1987
harvest 161.8 kg of CaO was spread per one hectare of arable land (in
1980-159.7 kilos of CaO).

     The attained level of mineral fertilization falls short of what is needed
by farmers who increasingly master the new farming technologies, especially of
grains. These technologies require greater portions of mineral fertilizers,
pesticides and modern methods in comparison with the traditional ways of
farming.

     Polish agriculture is now stabilizing production balance between plant
and animal production. Animal production is chiefly based on Polish fodder
resources with the parallel limitation of expensive grain imports, a source of
foreign debt in the past. In late 1970s grain and fodder imports amounted to
nine million tons annually (now ca three million tons). In recent years,
imports of agricultural raw materials are covered with surplus by exports of
agricultural products and foodstuffs.

     Farming production increases are now largely the effect to improve use of
all agricultural production elements: land, farmers' work and capital. This
entails the necessity to abandon activities which are unprofitable.

     The value of material outlays required to produce 1,000 zlotys' worth of
agricultural production decreased from 500 zlotys in 1981 to 450 zlotys in
1986 (1984 constant prices).

     However, it appears that the possibilities of lowering material
consumption index of agricultural production have been used up, as is
evidenced by agricultural production effects in 1987.

Agriculture production results

     The necessity to cut down on grain and fodder imports and the striving
to restore reasonable relations between the development of plant and animal
production have led to favourable changes in the structure of plant
production.

     The share of grains in the total area of crops increased from 53.9% in
the years 1976-1980 to 57.1% in 1986. The area of intensive growing of wheat
and triticale varieties is expanding at the expense of the area under oats and
rye.

     In 1984 for the first time in the history of Polish agriculture crop
harvest reached the level of 30 quintals per one hectare and in 1987 already
31.1 quintals per one hectare.

     This progress is in line with the guidelines of economic policy in
regards to agriculture which assumes greater increase of crop and fodder
production in relation to the growth rate of animal production. This is the
effect of achievements in the breeding of new plant varieties and improvements
in the level of agricultural science as a result of consistent application of
modern production technology. Potato, sugar beets and oil plant crops are also
increasing. In 1987 modern technologies were applied on the area of 700
thousand hectares under grain, 200 thousand hectares under rapeseed, 100
thousand hectares under potatoes and 50 thousand hectares under sugar beets.

     Some farmers gained grain yields above 100 quintals per one hectare. This
indicates that domestic varieties of crops and potential of Polish agriculture
is of considerable value.

     No too favourable climatic and soil conditions are the reason why the
country's lands do not offer substantial possibilities to grow soya, maize or
more sophisticated wheat varieties.

     In recent years cattle breeding has seen the tendency of eliminating
low-production cows. A decrease in cowheads in 1987 (by 4.2%) is accompanied
by increased quantities of milk procurement (by 1.1%). In view of the fact
that in Polish milk is a source of animal protein produced exclusively on
domestic fodder, the situation of cattle breeding has been the subject of
unwavering attention on the part of the government. Under government decisions
preferential prices are offered for milk, while cattle breeding and
repr