Speaking at the annual harvest festival at the presidential palace on Sunday, Nawrocki also opposed the EU's Green Deal plan to tackle climate change, saying it was damaging Poland’s farm sector.
"We want to be in the European Union and will cooperate on equal terms, but my duty as president is to say that we do not agree to a deal that destroys Polish agriculture," Nawrocki said, referring to the 27-nation bloc's climate and environmental policy package that includes farm rules.
He added that Polish farmers face "unfair competition from the east" and pressures from Western markets.
“The Polish countryside is always heard at the presidential palace, and solving its problems is one of my most important tasks,” he declared.
Nawrocki told farmers he rejects the EU's disputed agreement with Mercosur, the South American trade bloc of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Uruguay.
He said he had raised the issue with leaders in Italy and the Baltic states and will carry the message this week to Paris and Berlin.
The president added that he understands Poland’s strategic solidarity with Ukraine, while insisting that Poland cannot accept what he called "unfair competition from the east that hurts domestic agriculture."
Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Stefan Krajewski told the ceremony that this year has been difficult for farmers, citing spring frosts, a wet harvest, floods that put more than 22,000 hectares under water in the Vistula Delta region known as Żuławy, and hail and cloudbursts in other areas.
He said the government aims to pay out support from both EU and national budgets as quickly as possible.
Krajewski also said he would propose low-interest credit and loans for farmers holding grain they cannot sell because of low prices.
Krajewski declared that Poland does not accept the inflow of low-quality products from Mercosur countries.
He said Warsaw is working with other capitals to build a blocking minority in EU decision making and, if that fails, will seek safeguards for Polish farmers should the deal advance.
The Dożynki harvest festival marking the end of the farming season, featured the presentation of the winning harvest wreath in the palace courtyard, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The European Commission earlier this month approved the EU-Mercosur trade agreement for consideration and proposed provisional application pending approval by the European Parliament and EU member states.
In response to farm-sector concerns, Brussels has pointed to a possible “safety brake” in cases of import surges and to the option of compensation, measures designed to protect European producers.
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in November last year that his government would not back the EU's trade deal with the Mercosur group, citing resistance from farmers across Europe.
(rt/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP