Zmiany w handlu zagranicznym Polski produktami rolno-spożywczymi w latach 1989-2001

The paper presents tendencies in Poland's foreign trade in agri-food products over the 1989-2001 period. The analysis results show that the agro-food trade has an increasing tendency but the growth rate for the exports was lower compared with the imports. As a result, Poland is net importer of agri-food products. The deficit in the Polish agro-food trade was created mainly by the agricultural trade balance. In area of agri-food exports, the major trading partner - the EU countries has declined their share from about 63% an average of the years 1989-1991 to about 48% at present, whereas both former Soviet countries and CEFTA countries have been an increasingly important partners. The Polish agri-food exports gone to former Soviet countries increased their share from 5% to 20% while in the case of CEFTA countries from 1,8% to 11,8% respectively. Between 1989 and 2001, the growth rate of exports to the EU was 2.4 times lower compared with total exports. It means gradual reorientation of trade flows towards regions outside the European Union. Statistics show a rising share of imports from the EU and the CEFTA while EFTA counties lost their share of Polish agro-food imports.