Discussions are ongoing regarding the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the years 2028 to 2034. According to Professor Marek Wigier, Director of the Institute of Agricultural and Food Economics (IERiGŻ), farmers need stability and investment-oriented actions that support the competitiveness of their farms. Members of the European Parliament have called for increased funding for the CAP and the preservation of its current structure. For Polish farmers, these issues are crucial, as the last two decades have shown that EU funds drive the development and modernization of their farms, which is a guarantee of the country’s food security.
“In the new agricultural perspective, farmers expect the policy not to become more complicated—in simple terms, they expect simplifications in the measures to be implemented from 2028 onward. They also expect, I believe, no reduction in the budget for the Common Agricultural Policy. Such assurances have apparently already been given. The future agricultural policy will be divided into two pillars: one supporting rural development and the other providing direct support to farmers,” Professor Wigier emphasized in an interview with Newseria agency.
The European Commission’s draft Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), which will define the EU’s spending priorities and objectives for 2028–2034, is expected to be presented in July. That is when it will become clear how the CAP will look in the coming years. Meanwhile, the European Parliament has expressed its position. In early May, MEPs adopted a resolution on priorities for the MFF, emphasizing the need to guarantee continued support for the competitiveness and resilience of agriculture and fisheries—including small farms and young farmers and fishers—and assistance for these sectors in better climate protection. They called for a higher and dedicated CAP budget and opposed any potential cuts in the funds allocated.
“I do not believe that in the future budget the Common Agricultural Policy will be less important than it currently is, because Poland has succeeded in putting food security on the EU agenda. And if we talk about food security combined with energy security, in which agriculture is increasingly involved through raw material bases, I don’t think CAP spending can be smaller. Of course, defense spending will also be high, but I think food security remains a priority,” said Professor Wigier.
The European Parliament also opposed the idea of transforming the CAP into a single fund for each member state. There were suggestions that the Commission might propose one national plan divided among various sectors (similar to the current Recovery and Resilience Facility). Many farmers fear the elimination of CAP pillars—the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. The COPA-COGECA organization stresses that without a clear, specially protected budget line for EU agricultural policy, it could collapse like a house of cards.
“Farmers expect a certain stability in the conditions under which they will operate after 2028. I mean both investment-related measures supporting competitiveness improvements of farms and actions aimed at farmers who want to engage more in environmental stewardship,” Professor Wigier said.
Researchers from IERiGŻ PAN, together with the European Fund for the Development of Polish Villages, in a report titled “Assessment of CAP in Poland – Intensifying Innovation as a Necessary Condition for the Survival of Polish Agriculture,” point out that discussions on the shape of the new CAP should revisit issues such as the definition of an “active farmer,” regulation of agricultural land leases, spatial planning proposals considering agricultural interests, and the importance and role of agriculture in EU trade agreements. Often expressed is the need for deregulation, simplification, and a revision of the direct payment system per hectare.
The IERiGŻ director emphasizes that the new agricultural policy should primarily respond to current threats.
“A key priority for the CAP will be water-related issues, namely the increasing water deficit we are facing in Europe,” Professor Wigier noted.
Since 2004, EU budget transfers to Poland under the CAP have amounted to approximately €78 billion. Thanks largely to these funds, Polish agriculture has made impressive progress over the past two decades, with nearly a doubling of individuals running businesses in rural areas and a significant reduction in unemployment. Income per full-time farmer has increased more than 2.5 times during this time.
“Since our accession, we have largely reduced income disparities in agriculture. That was the first goal of the CAP at the start, and since 2004 we have been major beneficiaries of this aim. Without the CAP, that disparity today would be twice as large, and agricultural incomes would represent maybe 20% of incomes in other economic sectors,” noted Professor Bazyli Czyżewski from the Department of Macroeconomics and Food Economy at Poznań University of Economics.
The transformation of the agri-food sector has been accompanied by deep structural changes in agriculture. Since Poland joined the EU, the average size of agricultural land per farm has steadily increased (from 8.7 hectares before accession to 11.1 hectares in 2020). Subsequent years saw growth in medium and large farms in Poland, especially those larger than 20 hectares.
“In two decades, significant land concentration processes have taken place in agriculture; farm sizes have increased both on average and in various subcategories. This is undoubtedly thanks to the CAP. Alongside this came productivity growth, although it is still lower compared to other economic sectors. But as initially it could be said that six times more people worked in agriculture per 1% of GDP than in other sectors, now this has dropped to about two to three times,” Professor Czyżewski explained.
Before Poland’s EU accession, agriculture’s value added was €6.8 billion, increasing to €22.1 billion in 2023. Over two decades, Polish agri-food exports grew significantly—reaching €51.8 billion in 2023, ten times higher than before accession. The positive trade balance exceeded €18.6 billion, several times higher than the entire agri-food export before membership.
“Improved competitiveness also came from better farm quality, modernization of agriculture and the agri-food industry, and improved food quality and safety,” Professor Wigier listed.
“Thanks to EU accession, agriculture is now easier to operate in, it is easier to obtain funding and benefit from economic growth. There is greater equality and higher productivity than in a scenario where we were outside the Union,” added Professor Czyżewski.
The balance of Poland’s EU membership in agriculture, the future of the CAP, and challenges facing Polish farmers were among the topics discussed at a conference held last week to mark the 75th anniversary of the Institute of Agricultural and Food Economics – National Research Institute.
