EN
In agriculture of the EU-15 countries a steady decline is observable in the overall number of farms and a simultaneous growth in the number of economically and territorially large farms. The character of agriculture in the EU-15 countries, with which Polish agriculture will be competing on the Common Agricultural Market of the European Union, is already now determined by economically large and, as a rule, also territorially large farms. Economically large Polish farms are able to compete with farms operating in the EU-15 countries. However, the share of such farms in Polish agriculture is minimal. Therefore, in the coming years family farms in Polish agriculture will have to undergo thorough restructuring connected with transition from peasant establishments to family farms producing goods for the market. In the present macroeconomic conditions a rapid growth in the number and share of economically large farms is hard to achieve. Thus, in the next few years a fast increase is more probable in the number and share of economically medium-sized farms in Poland. A further growth of such farms may become the basis for a rapid development of economically large farms.