The chosen socio-economic problems of protecting valuable agricultural land in natura 2000 areas in Poland

Purpose: The aim of the study is to assess the effectiveness of conservation measures financed under the EU CAP on agricultural land located on N2000 areas. Design/Methodology/Approach: The analytical material consisted of the results of surveys using a standardized interview questionnaire which were carried out among 292 farmers (152 organic farmers and 140 conventional farmers) from the the area of N2000 "Biebrza Valley" PLH200008. The assumptions were verified based on the Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA analysis and Gamma rank correlation. The analytical material also consisted of EUROSTAT data on the area of the N2000 network and the area of agricultural land covered by this form of protection in EU countries. These data were subject to horizontal and vertical (years 2009-2017) comparative analysis. Findings: Environmental policy should be based on the idea of socially sustainable agriculture, including ecological sustainability, economic sustainability, and social sustainability in terms of effective inclusion of local communities in information, education and decision-making processes at the stages of development, deployment and implementation of protection programs. Practical Implications: The recommendations resulting from the conducted research and analyses may be adopted by the institutions responsible for the creation of environmental protection policies to improve the effectiveness of active forms of protection in valuable natural habitats that are used for agriculture. Originality/Value: The article indicates the recommendations based on building a lasting relationship between farmers and the protection of the environment.peer-reviewe

Trends in the Development of Organic Farming in Poland and Latvia Compared to the EU

The development of organic farming is determined by many factors. On the one hand, it is an increase in demand for food produced in this production system, on the other it is a subsidy system for organic farming under the CAP. The purpose of the article is a comparative analysis of the direction of changes in the development of organic farming in Poland and Latvia compared to the EU in the years 2000-2017. Information was analysed on the organic farming i.e. the area of organic crops, the number of certified farms and organic retail sales, based on FIBL data from the years 2000–2017. An analysis of the trend of changes in organic farming in Poland and Latvia indicates that the development of organic farming in both countries has clearly accelerated after their accession to the EU and after covering organic farming by the CAP support system. However, the case of Poland is definitely different from the trend of changes in organic farming in Latvia and in the EU, where both the number of organic farms and their area increased, with the simultaneous development of the organic food market. There are many indications that mistakes were made in the organic farming subsidy system