Poland postpones ban on GM feed again

On July 30, the Polish Council of Ministers adopted amendments to the national feed regulations, postponing the country's ban on the use of GM feed to January 1, 2030. The postponement will give the Polish feed industry more time to prepare for the GM ban.

The ban was originally scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2025. However, feed industry organizations have repeatedly warned that this will have an adverse impact on the supply chain due to the lack of alternatives to GM feed in Poland.

Poland initially passed a bill banning the use of GMOs in animal feed in 2006, but has been postponing the entry into force of the measure. Now the Polish government has reiterated its goal: to rebuild the protein independence of the feed market and gradually introduce and apply EU trends. Among other things, the decision will allow feed companies to "rebuild existing product procurement and distribution systems" and "adjust formulations and technological routes."

The Polish Ministry of Agriculture agrees with market participants that the entry into force of the GM ban in 2025 will lead to the collapse of the entire animal nutrition industry. The Ministry of Agriculture said it understood the challenges, saying that "Poland currently does not have enough high-protein raw materials to replace soybean meal in feed, nor can it guarantee the maintenance of the existing industrial scale."

The ministry also added that the Polish poultry and pig farming industries will not lose their competitive advantage due to the postponement of the ban. "Polish domestic products are characterized by lower prices compared to products from other EU countries, so Poland occupies a strong position in the EU and third country markets."

Poland's main agricultural organizations have not yet reacted to the government's decision, but poultry and pork producers may be satisfied with it. In discussions with the authorities, the National Poultry Council, the main union of poultry farmers, advocated for postponing the GM ban until after 2027. The council warned that the ban would harm the interests of Poland, Europe's largest poultry exporter, and undermine its chances of maintaining trade with foreign customers.