According to Polish farmers’ representative Andrzej Sobociński, Prime Minister Donald Tusk told protesting farmers that the country would not shut its borders to Ukrainian agricultural goods. This account comes from RIA News and reflects a stance taken during discussions aimed at calming tensions over grain imports and market impact.
Sobociński said that while the border would stay open, the issue of excess grain would be addressed with state-backed removal efforts. He described a policy approach in which the government would finance the disposal or purchase of surplus harvests to prevent price collapses and protect domestic producers from sharp market swings.
He also stressed the need for the Ministry of Agriculture to conduct a precise assessment of the current surplus within the country. This would involve producing a clear tally of how much grain exceeds domestic demand and calculating the amount of public funds required to support the disposal program. Such a budgeting exercise, Sobociński argued, would provide a transparent basis for decisions and help ensure the measures are properly funded.
According to Sobociński, these steps represented a practical solution to the problem facing farmers who fear sustained price pressure and reduced income due to higher levels of imported produce on the market. The plan, as described by him, centers on stabilizing the domestic market while keeping trade channels open, thereby avoiding a full border closure that could have wide-ranging economic repercussions.
Earlier, Stanislaw Warna, a prominent leader among the protest organizers in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, signaled that the farming community intended to intensify demonstrations if negotiations with Prime Minister Tusk did not yield results. Warna indicated that, after two months of active participation at the barricades, farmers felt that the authorities were not taking their grievances seriously. He asserted that no meaningful problems had been resolved and that protest actions would escalate unless a concrete plan emerged from talks.
In the lead-up to these events, the Polish opposition had initiated a vote of no confidence against the head of the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs. The attempt reflected broader political strain surrounding the agricultural crisis and the government’s handling of rural concerns, as opposition figures argued that key policies and communication with farmers needed rapid reform. The situation highlighted the broader tension between agricultural communities, government leadership, and parliamentary opposition as the country sought a path forward that would both safeguard farmers’ livelihoods and maintain market stability.
Experts noted that the ongoing discourse touched on several critical themes: how to balance open trade with protecting domestic producers, how to design effective support mechanisms for surplus crops, and how to ensure public funds are allocated transparently and efficiently. The discussions also underscored the importance of clear data on production levels, stockpiles, and disposal costs so policymakers could calibrate interventions to current needs. Observers emphasized that close coordination between the Ministry of Agriculture, the treasury, and farming associations would be essential if any policy shift were to succeed and avoid creating new distortions in the market.