Polish agriculture minister meets with farmers to avert nationwide protest

WARSAW -- Polish Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Czeslaw Siekierski met with representatives of regional agricultural chambers on Wednesday to listen to their demands in an effort to prevent a month-long nationwide protest.

"European agriculture is losing its competitiveness. Polish farmers have suffered the most significant losses due to the influx of agricultural products from Ukraine," Siekierski was quoted by local media as saying.

The minister said that he and his colleagues would hold talks at the Ministry of Finance on Thursday to discuss how to support the agriculture sector. "In addition to low-interest loans, there should be subsidies for cereals and possibly fertilizers," he said.

According to Wiktor Szmulewicz, the president of the National Council of Agricultural Chambers, farmers oppose the implementation of the European Green Deal and the import of agricultural products from Ukraine, demanding support for animal husbandry.

Farmers announced a country-wide thirty-day protest scheduled to start on Friday. One of their reasons is the European Union (EU)'s extension of duty-free trade in agricultural goods with Ukraine until 2025. Additionally, they also want a departure from the requirements of the so-called Green Deal, saying that it hampers agricultural production in the bloc by imposing additional environmental regulations.