- In mid-November, a nationwide protest organized by Polish farmers’ unions and local committees will begin across the country.
- Farmers oppose the European Union’s agricultural policy, rising production costs, and the influx of low-priced goods from Ukraine.
- The month-long mobilization will conclude with a march in Brussels aimed at drawing attention to the challenges facing European agriculture.
Farmers protest across the country
In mid-November, the largest protest action by farmers in many years will begin in Poland. Demonstrations are planned in most provinces and will be rotated around key routes across the country.
The farmers are voicing their opposition to the principles of the Green Deal and the rising costs of production, which they believe make domestic agriculture uncompetitive. They also point to the influx of cheap food from outside the European Union, particularly from Ukraine, which is destabilising the market.
The organisers stress that the protest is peaceful, but will continue until there is a response from national and EU authorities. The action involves the NSZZ “Solidarity” of Individual Farmers and numerous local agricultural associations and committees.
March on Brussels as the culmination of the action
The announced final farmers’ march in Brussels is to become the symbolic conclusion of the month-long mobilisation. The organisers want the event to be a voice against the direction in which the European Union’s common agricultural policy is heading.
Their aim is to draw the attention of European decision-makers to the plight of food producers in Poland and the need to revise EU climate regulations. The protesters emphasise that their action is not against European integration, but against decisions that they believe are destroying local farms.
The mobilisation is part of a wider movement of farmer discontent in many EU countries. The protests from Poland are to become part of a common call for a change in the rules of European agriculture.
