On top of this they had 72 non-recommended varieties currently undergoing three year trials. Around 50% of these will make it to the National List and only 10% in any one year, just proving how rigorous and competitive the process can be.
It’s also worth noting that the oilseed rape (OSR) crops were spotless of disease with only one fungicide application.
We then travelled to the wheat trials and saw the smallest field of wheat I've ever seen. The average farm size within this region of Poland is double the national average at 24 hectares, meaning they are struggling to find efficiencies through economies of scale.
We then travelled to see two working farms to discuss the issues of growing OSR and protein crops, or grain legumes as the Polish call them - peas and beans to us. We finally ended the day with more discussions over dinner and a couple of glasses of local beer.
On day two there was a conference covering biofuels, rape meal and protein crop production. There was a series of presentations followed by a Q&A session in front of a 250-strong audience. There was also a panel debate which I was asked to sit on, which had excellent interaction and really relevant questions. This lasted for a couple of hours and was followed by a press conference with the Polish cousins of Farmers Weekly and Farmers Guardian.
The main issue was one we are very familiar with in the UK – neonicotinoids. The Polish Agriculture Minister, who I was sat next to, received a severe grilling from the assembled farmers having only just turned down an emergency use authorisation for the seed dressing.
With the aid of a very good interpreter I explained about the devastating effects of cabbage stem flea beetle on our UK rapeseed area and also how we are encouraging farmers to get our messages out to the politicians and the wider public.
Flying home, the view from the window made the area and importance of rapeseed grown in the region all the more apparent. All in all a very interesting two days and it was great that our organisation was represented.