Economics & Sociology

The report discusses the changes in the functions of agricultural holdings and how this impacts rural development. The functions of agricultural holdings have been identified on the basis of identifying the main sources of income. As a result of the transformation of Polish economy and integration with the EU, the functions of agricultural holdings have to a large extent changed. Households and production holdings are now treated as two separate entities. At the same time polarization has been noted with two distinct categories of holdings that have emerged: (1) agricultural holdings and commercial farms; (2) subsistence farms, social holdings and recreational holdings. The number of holdings with mixed sources of income has also increased. A farmer family no longer specializes in one domain only and is now multi-professional. In addition, agricultural holdings and rural areas evolved from single-functional to multi-functional in nature.