Polish Corn Farmers Celebrate Harvest

6 October 2009

Eric Wenberg at “Corn Days” in Teresin

On October 4, 2009, Eric Wenberg, Agricultural Counselor at the American Embassy in Warsaw and Marcus Törnberg, Director of Heifer International Poland, attended the annual fall "Corn Days” celebration near Teresin. The annual event, now in its 11th year, brings together corn growers from across Poland and gives them a chance to survey new seed varieties and farm equipment. It is also an excellent opportunity to give awards to the best and brightest farmers harvesting corn.  Polish farmers had a chance to benefit from American know-how in corn-growing. John Deere tractors and Pioneer Hybrid seeds were displayed. Pioneer, a Dupont company, is the number one corn seed sales company in Poland. In 2009, Poland grew 732,000 hectares of corn, roughly 1.8 million acres. Please click here to see a photo gallery from the “Corn Days” event.

Corn farmers in Poland face many challenges. Their competitors, corn exporters in other EU countries, like France, for example, receive a subsidy that is double of what Polish farmers get. The United States believes agricultural subsidies should be capped and regulated through an agreement at the World Trade Organization. Until that happens, however, new EU member states are at a disadvantage to their wealthier EU partners. Poland does not grow corn primarily for compound feed production as the United States does. Almost 60 percent of the crop is harvested for green matter, or silage, an on-farm feed type that provides forage ration but lacks the benefit of nutrition available from compounded, manufactured feed. The Polish corn crop is under attack from a pest of the European Corn Borer, which destroys 15 percent of the crop, reducing yields and forcing the country to import corn while corn farmers in Poland have the capacity to grow enough corn. The pest can be easily defeated by applying modern biotechnology available worldwide. Its use in Europe is restricted.

In his remarks, Eric Wenberg said, that the United States and Poland are celebrating the 90th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year and that Polish immigrants have become some of the best farmers in the United States and a part of the agricultural landscape in both countries. Wenberg added that Polish farmers need access to the best farming technology including plant biotechnology so they can increase productivity instead of importing corn.