The Polish Government has postponed its ban on the use of feed containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) until 1 January 2030, All About Feed reported.
Poland – Europe’s leading poultry exporter – originally adopted a ban on GMOs in animal feed in 2006 but had consistently delayed its introduction, the 12 August report said.
Scheduled for introduction on 1 January 2025, feed industry organisations had repeatedly warned that a ban would have a detrimental impact on the supply chain as Poland lacked an alternative to GMO feed, All About Feed wrote.
Announcing the delay of the ban on 30 July, the Council of Ministers reaffirmed its intention “to gradually introduce and apply European Union trends in the scope of rebuilding protein independence in the feed market”.
In addition to giving the Polish feed sector more time to prepare for the GMO ban, the government was quoted as saying the decision would allow feed companies “to rebuild the current systems of product purchase and distribution” and to “adjust recipes and technological lines”.
The Polish Agricultural Ministry had agreed with market players that introducing the GMO ban in 2025 would have led to the collapse of the entire animal nutrition sector, the report said.
Replacing imported soyabean meal with domestic high-protein feed raw materials that was comparable in terms of quality and economy would take time, the ministry said.
“There are not enough alternative high-protein raw materials in Poland that would allow the elimination of soyabean meal from feed production without reducing production results on an industrial scale,” the ministry added.
In addition, the ministry said the postponement of the ban would allow the Polish poultry and pig industries to remain competitive.
“Domestic products are characterised by lower prices compared to products in other European Union (EU) countries, thanks to which Poland holds a strong position in the EU and on third-country markets,” the ministry was quoted as saying.
Although leading Polish agricultural organisations had not responded to the government’s decision at the time of the report, it was likely to be welcomed by poultry and pig manufacturers, All About Feed wrote.
During discussions with the authorities, the National Poultry Council, a leading union of poultry farmers, had advocated postponing the GMO ban beyond 2027, as envisaged in the original proposal, the report said.
According to the National Poultry Council, the ban would impact the poultry sector in Poland, Europe’s leading poultry exporter.
