Strategies for the Development of Average Polish Dairy Farms in the Conditions of a Single European Market

Abstract

<jats:p>The paper aims to achieve two objectives: 1) To determine the competitive potential of Polish dairy farms and assess the economic results they achieved compared to other European Union entities, 2) To determine and assess the economic effects of possible development directions (strategies) for average Polish dairy farms. The analyses show that the production and economic potential of dairy farms from the European Union countries, characterized by the largest increase in milk production in years 2005–2015, was very diverse. On average, in 2016, the total value of the fixed assets of a Danish agricultural holding was 16 times higher than the value of the fixed assets of a farm in Poland and the average net value added generated by a Polish farm in 2016 was over thirteen times lower compared to Danish farms. However, if we take into account the costs of engaging external factors of production (land, labour and capital), it turns out that Danish farms are losing their advantages. The simulations of three possible variants of development for an average Polish dairy farm showed that good economic results were generated by the variant in which the land was leased and farm holders got employment outside the farm. The variant, which assumed an increase in the number of dairy cows (from 15 to 30) and the resulting growth in milk production could potentially give a slightly higher total net income for the farm family in the first two years, but it was certainly more risky.</jats:p>