As reported by the Central Statistical Office, in 2016 the area of agricultural land in Poland amounted to 18.6 million hectares, which also means they covered 59.6% of the country’s area. Over the past few years, this size has not undergone significant changes. Statistically, in Poland, there is 0.48 hectare of agricultural land per resident. A total of about 14.4 million hectares remains in so-called good agricultural culture.
Out of the total area of agricultural land in Poland, the area of sown fields for harvest was estimated in 2015 at 10.8 million hectares (an increase of 3.2% year-on-year). Meadows and pastures occupied a total of 3.1 million hectares (a decrease of 0.9% year-on-year). Other types of land (e.g., fallow land, home gardens) constituted a small percentage nationwide.
The number of farms in Poland is decreasing steadily, though not very dynamically. In 2010, 1.5 million entities engaged in farming were recorded, and according to the latest data from 2015, their number slightly exceeded 1.4 million. In terms of size (criterion of agricultural land area), the proportions are as follows.
| Agricultural land area | Number of farms | Percentage |
| Up to 1 hectare | 27.6 thousand | 2.0% |
| From 1 to 2 hectares | 253.7 thousand | 18.0% |
| From 2 to 5 hectares | 453.4 thousand | 32.2% |
| From 5 to 10 hectares | 322.6 thousand | 22.9% |
| From 10 to 15 hectares | 145.9 thousand | 10.3% |
| Above 15 hectares | 206.6 thousand | 14.6% |
| Total | 1,409.6 thousand | 100.0% |
The average size of agricultural land per farm was 10.3 hectares in 2015. Over the last few years, this indicator has been increasing – by 0.1 hectare compared to data from two years earlier and by 0.5 hectare over a five-year period.
Based on data from the Agency for Restructuring and Modernization of Agriculture and the Central Statistical Office, in 2015 there were 2,083,485 agricultural producers registered. Compared to the data from the previous year, this represents a 1.8% increase. Over a five-year span, the progressive trend within the analyzed indicator becomes even more evident. In 2010, there were nearly 70.9 thousand fewer agricultural producers.
The latest data presented by analysts from the Central Statistical Office show that global agricultural production in Poland amounted to 98.6 billion zlotys (in current prices) in 2015. A significant part of this value (87.8%) refers to individual farms, which achieved an output of 86.6 billion zlotys. Intermediate consumption in agricultural production was estimated at 61.7 billion zlotys, which in turn means that the gross added value amounted to 36.9 billion zlotys. It is worth noting that per hectare, the indicator of global agricultural production in 2015 closed at 6,782 zlotys, and taking into account the conversion per resident — at 2,565 zlotys.
The analysis of the outlined data over the last few years reveals two kinds of trends — progressive until 2013, and regressive thereafter. These trends are illustrated by the following chart.
Global Agricultural Production in Poland in 2010–2015 (in billion zlotys)
Analysis of the above diagram suggests that the value of global production in Polish agriculture was in 2015 lower by 6.4% compared to the previous year and by 8.3% lower compared to the pivotal year of 2013.
On global Polish agricultural production, estimated at 98.6 billion zlotys in 2015, nearly half consisted of the value:
- 49.4 billion zlotys of global plant production (representing a decrease of 8.1% compared to the previous year),
- 49.2 billion zlotys of global animal production (representing a decrease of 4.5% compared to the previous year).
The structure of commercial agricultural production (the sum of the sale of agricultural products to procurement and marketplaces) presents slightly different proportions within the mentioned two main categories. Animal production accounted for 58.5%, and plant production accounted for 41.5%. In 2015, the indicator for the relevant subcategories was as follows.
Structure of Commercial Agricultural Production in Poland in 2015
The profitability indicators of agricultural production presented by the CSO do not inspire optimism. Compared to the previous year, financial results and overall production conditions have deteriorated. This is illustrated by the so-called price scissors index (price relations), which in 2015 was 97.3 (assuming the previous year = 100), and five years earlier was at 110.1.
