Here’s your chance: farmers are sharing their harvest for free
Farmers invite visitors to their fields to pick tomatoes and plums—for free —to prevent the crops from rotting.
You can pick your own plums in the fields and only “pay what you think is worth it.”
The story began with a case in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, where a farmer harvested 11 tons of plums, but the customer unexpectedly refused to buy them. To avoid losing the harvest, he invites anyone who wants to pick the fruit to do so for free. The idea became popular on social networks, and within a few days, cars began to drive up to the orchard. People picked plums, thanked the farmer, and left money—whenever they could.
A similar situation occurred near Zamość, where a family grew tomatoes on 30 hectares. Due to the cold weather, the crop ripened later, and processors would only accept one truckload of produce per day. Since it became too expensive to retain workers, the farmers opened their fields to anyone who wanted to work. People came from other regions to get fresh vegetables at lower prices and support local producers.
However, behind these touching stories of solidarity lies a bitter reality: Polish agriculture is experiencing a severe crisis.
The real situation:
Farmers are offered from 30 to 50 groszy per kilogram of pepper, even less than the cost of a plastic bag in the store.
Processing plants have reduced their purchases, as they have started importing semi-finished products from Ukraine and Egypt.
Even with contracts in place, the settlement can take months.
Farmers claim that this year’s harvest is lower than in the past, so a surplus of products does not cause the crisis; rather, it is a system that harms local producers.
“We can’t sell below cost, but we can’t let the harvest just rot. People who come to help are our only source of support,” shares one of the farmers.
Polish villages are now on the verge of collapse: either the state will reconsider its policy of supporting farmers, or the fields will turn into dumps of rotting vegetables and fruit.
