EN
The total direct costs of agricultural crops prior to and after accession to the European Union were compared. The following indexes were obtained (the year 2003 was treated as 100%): – winter wheat: 2008 – 153.35 2009 – 150.97 – spring barley: 2008 – 174.28 2009 – 155.96 – rye: 2008 – 165.33 2009 – 169.06 – winter rape: 2008 – 147.79 2009 – 169.24 – sugar beet: 2008 – 108.80 2009 – 107.08 The cost of plant protection products for particular crops were compared during the same analogous periods and the following indexes were obtained (the year 2003 was again treated as 100%): – winter wheat: 2008 – 191.13 2009 – 155.42 – spring barley: 2008 – 566.37 2009 – 426.23 – rye: 2008 – 716.24 2009 – 798.42 – winter rape: 2008 – 304.07 2009 – 254.77 – sugar beet: 2008 – 109.26 2009 – 136.63 Considering in the first comparison it was revealed that the variable (direct) costs increased in the analogous period from 50 to 70% with the exception of sugar beet cultivation where the cost optimization was the effect of a particular sugar refinery sugar policy influencing the price of seeds, other production means and harvesting services. In the same time the price of plant protection products (indexes 155–304) has increased rapidly. All indexes regarding spring barley and rye seed treatment were studied. They were conditioned by “economical” pesticides use in those crops at the beginning of 1990s. As it can be concluded from the article 3 the share of plant protection product costs significantly increased with the exception of sugar beet cultivation. Analising the market of plant protection products during the same period 2003, 2008/2009 it was revealed that the price of plant protection products were increasing moderately up to the year 2007, while at the turn of 20007/2008 they increased rapidly, both as a result of the increase in share of plant protection costs, and a considerable progress in the use of pesticides from 0.73 kg in 2003 to 1.7 kg in 2008 (2009 – about 1.6 kg). It can be presumed that tendency of the higher share of plant protection product costs in direct costs may remain in the next years, especially due to increasing crop quality requirements.