WHEAT PROTECTION COSTS AND PESTICIDE USE ARE GROWING ALONG FARM SIZE. CASE STUDY FROM POLAND

Abstract

This paper aims at investigating pesticides used by farmers and their costs in Poland for winter wheat protection. Based on data collected in 2020 from the market survey among 1,299 growers, an analysis of how farm size determines pesticide usage, and their costs was conducted. A significant interrelationship was found. The average cost of pesticide used in wheat cultivation in 2020 was 85.61 EUR/ha, and the median was 77.24 EUR/ha. The average cost of herbicide was 28.62 EUR/ha with a median of 27.40 EUR/ha. Respectively, the cost for fungicide was 47.90 and 40.68 EUR/ha, while for insecticides farmers spent on average 2.28 EUR/ha. Along with the increased farm size, the protection cost and number of treatments increased, too. Farm size also had an impact on particular herbicide strategies. Smaller farms much more often chose spring herbicide to manage weeds, while bigger ones used herbicide in autumn. In the article, we showed the importance of farm size for the strategies adopted by them. This is particularly important in the era of limiting the use of pesticides and the EU’s Green Deal policy. It is also becoming important to promote agrotechnics that reduce the number of pesticide treatments.