agriculture and food economy in poland

The quantity of goods produced by the food industry is adapted mainly to
demand on the domestic market and export capabilities.
In 2003 the output of meat products, most of dairy products, chocolate and
chocolate articles, spirit products, feedingstuffs and cigarettes increased, whereas
that of sugar, bakery goods and vegetable oils decreased.
Consumption of foodstuffs
FOOD INDUSTRY
Incomes of the population determine the demand for food and are a derivative of
the growth in GDP, which increased by 3.7% in 2003 compared to 2002. The total
food consumption rose by 2.5%, the average remuneration in the enterprise sector
increased in real terms by 2% and the average old-age and disability pensions from
the non-agricultural social insurance system – by 4.1%. The consumption of
particular products fluctuated depending on their prices. More favourable supply of
products of animal origin impacted the rise in the consumption thereof, whereas the
consumption of certain products of plant origin decreased slightly due to the worse
harvest of cereals, rapeseed and potatoes. An increase in fruit production did not
contribute to a rise in the consumption thereof.
Table 11. Annual consumption per capita of staple foodstuffs in 1995-2003
Specification
unit
1995 2000 2001 2002 2003*
Processed cereals kg 120 119 119 120 120
Potatoes kg 138 132 130 131 130
Vegetables kg 120 120 121 111 110
Fruit kg 40,9 51,1 57,1 56,7 54,5
Meat and offal kg 63,4 65,4 65,9 69,5 72,4
including: total meat kg 59,4 61,4 61,8 65,3 67,7
- pork kg 39,1 38,0 38,2 39,2 41,2
- beef kg 8,7 6,8 5,5 5,2 5,8
- poultry meat kg 10,2 14,1 17,0 19,8 19,7
Edible oils by
kg
marketable weight kg 25,3 28,4 29,5 30,8 29,2
including: animal fats kg 7,2 6,6 6,7 6,7 6,9
- vegetable oils kg 14,4 17,6 18,5 19,5 17,6
- butter kg 3,7 4,2 4,3 4,6 4,7
Cow’s milk l 195 191 187 182 181
Hen eggs (units) 154 186 198 211 214
Sugar kg
41,9 41,2 41,2 43,6 40,3
Source: GUS, Statistical Yearbooks; Gulbiecka, preliminary estimates of the Institute of Food and Agriculture Economics, data for 2003
As for the meat pattern consumption in 2003, the previous years’ changes
continued, i.e. a decline in beef and a rise in poultry meat consumption.
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