Beef imports to Poland
- In 2020, beef product imports to Poland amounted to 64.8 thousand tonnes, 6.4% lower than in 2019. Its reduction was mainly driven by a decrease in beef live imports to 29.9 thousand tonnes in product weight (from 33 thousand tonnes in 2019).
- The positive balance of foreign trade in beef products in value terms increased to EUR 1431.0 million (from EUR 1423.5 million in 2019), while in volume terms it amounted to approximately 393.4 thousand tonnes.
- The import volume of beef products in 2020, as in 2019, was dominated by beef livestock with a 46.2% share. The only sourcing market for cattle was the EU, from which all imported animals originated. In 2020, cattle and calf imports decreased by 25.0%. Imports of calves fell by 33.0% to 32.8 thousand head. The decrease in calf imports was conditioned, among other things, by the deterioration in the profitability of rearing and the downturn in exports (a significant proportion of Polish production is destined for export). The main supply markets for cattle and calves were Lithuania (33.0 thousand head), Slovakia (26.8 thousand head) and the Netherlands (15.4 thousand head).
- Beef imports amounted to 21.6 thousand tonnes in 2020, 2.7 thousand tonnes less than in 2019, with an average price decrease of 1.7% to €3.38/kg. Beef was imported mainly from: Germany (4.6 thousand tonnes), the UK (4.1 thousand tonnes), the Czech Republic (2.6 thousand tonnes), the Netherlands (2.2 thousand tonnes), Italy (1.9 thousand tonnes), Ireland (1.6 thousand tonnes) and Lithuania (1.3 thousand tonnes).
- The balance in foreign trade in beef during the transition period was positive, due to the negligible role of beef imports. No increase in imports should be expected in the coming years due to the low domestic demand for beef.
Source: E Bąk-Filipek, Uwarunkowania rozwoju rynku wołowiny w Polsce, SGGW Publishing House, Warsaw 2021.