2015 has been a very difficult year for Polish agriculture, for several reasons: the Russian embargo, the warm winter and drought. The end of the season was marked by more optimism, as prices on the domestic market increased, even though the profitability of foreign trade deteriorated, as reported to www.sadyogrody.pl by Andrzej Kowalski, Director of the Institute of Agricultural Economics and Food Economy.
"We are pleased with the increases in the prices for fruit and vegetables and the opening of exotic new markets for growers, namely in the Far Asia and the U.S.; however, we need to be aware about how much the profitability of the Polish production has fallen," affirms Andrzej Kowalski.
According to the expert, growers are facing 2016 with uncertainty. "We do not know how the Russian embargo situation will develop. Recently, President Putin announced it would close the border with Belarus, which in 2015 was one of the biggest producers and exporters of apples. This could have a big impact on Polish fruit growers," says Andrzej Kowalski.
In his view, the difficulties for Polish fruit and vegetable producers are also the result of the changing climate. "Rising temperatures and warm autumns and winters are certainly not ideal for the overwintering of plants," adds the expert.
Source: sadyogrody.pl