- Animal breeders once again demanded their rights.
- Emil Miezaj, cattle breeder from the province. West Pomeranian Voivodeship and Janusz Terka, who keeps pigs in the Łódź region, do not mince words and point out the need for immediate protection of what they do.
- If Adam Nowak, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, understands breeders and animal husbandry, and is also aware of the conditions of our agriculture, he should not allow further harm to farmers keeping animals.
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Preventive slaughter of pig herds near Gniezno has been resumed
The Senate Agriculture Committee, chaired by Ryszard Bober, asked the Minister of Agriculture what he intends to do for European farmers when Poland takes over the presidency of the Council of the European Union, which will take place on January 1, 2025? Cattle and pig breeders took the floor during this meeting and once again loudly demanded their rights and directly pointed out to the minister the most pressing issue to be addressed. The discussion was very interesting, the breeders' comments were absolutely right, and the minister's understanding of them seemed sincere.
The discussion during the above-mentioned meeting lasted almost three hours. For those of you who did not have time (well, where to get it during the peak harvest season) to listen to what was said there, we offer information and comments in a nutshell.
It has long been known that working with animals is hard, and those who devote themselves to it have no time for anything else. Friday, holiday or Sunday, no time off or rest, and so on and on, with no days off, not to mention holidays. When dealing with animals, you have to be trained up to your elbows.
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The drama of pig breeders in the Gniezno district continues. "No one counts losses anymore"
10 million less
According to the Central Statistical Office, the pig population in December 2023 was 9.7 million. pieces, showing an increase of 1.5% compared to the same period in 2022. The decrease in population occurred only in the group of pigs, in the group of pigs for slaughter, where it amounted to 2.1%. These are not big changes that have still not reversed the long-term downward trend in pig production in Poland.
The herd of sows for breeding increased by 70.7 thousand compared to December 2022. pieces (by 11.9%) to the level of 663.3 thousand pieces, then also in this case we can say the same as about the entire pig herd.
The largest shares in the national pig population were held by the following voivodeships: Wielkopolskie (28.7%), Masovian Voivodeship (13.6%), Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (10.4%), Łódź Voivodeship (10.3%) and Pomeranian Voivodeship (8.3%). . The smallest shares were recorded in the following voivodeships: Lubuskie (1.0%), Podkarpackie (1.0%) and Lesser Poland (1.3%).
This does not change the fact that over two decades, the pig population in Poland has dropped from 18.5 million (2003) to the above-mentioned 9.7 million in 2023. Over 20 years, nearly 10 pigs have been lost from breeding and breeding. million pieces of these animals.
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The Animal Health Act is getting closer. Does it pose a threat to breeders?
The cattle are holding on
The cattle population (dairy and meat) in December 2023 amounted to 6.4 million animals and was lower by 0.2% compared to December 2022.
The Polish Federation of Cattle Breeders and Milk Producers emphasizes that 2023 was another difficult year for milk producers. Breeders continued to struggle with high production costs, low prices of raw materials, shortages of roughage in some regions of the country, but also the lack of successors and people willing to continue running farms. The problem of successors on dairy farms is the greatest challenge facing Polish dairy farming.
In turn, IERiGŻ reports that in 2023, the process of restructuring farms keeping cows was progressing. Dairy farming was abandoned for both economic and social reasons. Farms characterized by low productivity or as a result of a change in the production profile are disappearing. The Central Statistical Office reports that in December 2023, as many as 64% of dairy herds in Poland numbered up to 9 cows, and only 3% of herds were estimated at more than 50 animals. This means that the consolidation of milk production will continue, small and uneconomic farms will go out of business, and their production will be taken over by larger ones.
Domestic market experts say that the decline in the number of dairy cows is compensated by the increasing milk yield of animals. IAFE estimates that the average yield per cow in the EU in 2023 was 7,710 kg of milk, although it is worth noting that specialized herds of dairy cows that are assessed for utility value are characterized by higher average yields.
Who are breeders today? It cannot be denied that they are under constant pressure, especially from various pro-vegan organizations that have huge financial resources, often from unknown sources, for campaigns promoting a non-meat lifestyle. This trend is not only harmful to health by depriving consumers of good protein, but also very harmful because it leads to the dependence of societies on the mass production of processed plant food.
Iwona Dyba and Radosław Iwański comment on what happened during the meeting of the Senate Agriculture Committee. They quote the statements of breeders and the deputy minister, remaining in good faith as to the intentions of the people managing the agricultural department.
