The main goal of this paper is to present the importance of producer groups and cooperative banks in the sustainable development of rural areas in Poland. The analysis shows that both producer groups and cooperative banks play a major role in agricultural progress. Yet, in Poland the potential of these organizations is not adeąuately utilized because of insufficient support and promotion (in the case of the former) and regular changes in the law that have often limited their development (in the case of the latter). However, the latest data prove that the situation of cooperative banks is improving very fast. Thanks to appropriate policy and a consolidation process they have retained their market position, despitebeing faced by competition from big commercial banks and other institutions like Poczta Polska (Polish Post), which recently started to provide financial services, and Spółdzielcze Kasy Oszczędnościowo-Kredytowe (Cooperative Savings and Credit Bank).