Milk industry wants bank loan guarentees to benefit from EU aid money

Polish dairy industry representatives believe that they could benefit from European Union (EU) membership, but first they need help from the Polish government. The dairies fear that they would be unable to take advantage of EU modernization aid, as they do not have the required co-financing. This is why they want the government to extend bank loan guarantees to them, as banks are unwilling to do so due to the poor condition of the sector. The European Commission supports this view, saying that the government should support dairies using, for example, the EU's SAPARD fund. However industry representatives also highlight a problem potentially greater than the investment, namely the poor quality of milk supplied by farmers. In related news, the Polish Federation of Food Producers (PFPZ) went to Brussels, taking with them two tonnes of Polish food, to demand fair competition from the EU. PFPZ is protesting primarily against the low production quotas proposed by the EU, which according to producers would be disasterous for them. (Puls Biznesu, p. 7; Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 21) T.J.