Since Poland entered EU on 1st of May 2004 its land and real estates could be legally bought by non-Polish citizens. However, given the law extension of twelve years, foreigners would still need permits to purchase Polish land. Warsaw argued that the rule was necessary because the value of agricultural land in Poland is much cheaper than in the rest of the EU, which would favor foreign and industrial land buyers over Polish small farmers. In addition, Poland still has a large numbers of small scale farmsteads that represent the non-commercialized, low input and biodiversity rich pre-EU agriculture. As 2nd May 2016 -the end date of law extension- was approaching, Polish farmers started organizing protests demanding further protection. It was in the beginning of 2015 when the farmers’ discontent and protests, growing up over the previous three years, culminated. On 12th of February 2015 hundreds of Polish farmers blocked major highways surrounding the Polish capital and drove their tractors to the center of Warsaw. Another protest occurred on 19th of February 2015 when 6,000 Polish farmers protested in Warsaw and in parallel in 50 other locations in Poland. It is the single largest farmers protest to have ever taken place in Poland. The protest in Warsaw culminated with blocking the government land agencies and occupying a centric spot they named the 'Green City', an encampment that symbolize farmers’ fight to save their livelihood and way of life. The protestor also established the 'Academy of Self Sufficiency and Health' that organized a series of workshops, slide shows and films, demonstrating the practical techniques of self-sufficiency. The farmers protested against the EU’s agricultural policy driven by an increased export-led production, monoculture farming, application of synthetic fertilizer and pesticides, and expensive farm machinery. The protestors were also against harsh regulations for any farmhouse foods to be legally sold to the Polish public, and the arrival of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) crops. In addition, Polish farmers were unhappy with the lack of financial assistance to solve the problems cause by the Russian import ban erected on 7th of August 2014 as an answer to Western economic sanctions penalizing Russia for actions carrying out in Ukraine.  The intentions of rights-wings government, elected in fall 2015, to ensure that farmland stays in the Polish hands resulted in the new stricter agricultural law. According to this law, only those who own not more than 300 hectares of farmland and have been residents of the municipality in which they bought the land for at least five years will be able to buy the land. The land could also be sold to anyone who does not fit these criteria but only with permission granted by the Agricultural Property Agency. Given that, according to the EU law, Poland cannot discriminate against the citizens of the other member states, the national government proposed that the state stops selling its land (most of which is classed as agricultural) for the next five years. The legal changes was recognized by farmers as a step forward to prevent selling off prime farmland to foreign speculators. However, the opposition party (The Polish People's Party- PSL) demonstrated against the bill, and accused the government of suppressing the liberal democracy in Poland. In turn, the European Commission launched a probe on the state of the rule of law in the country, as the new regulation could also breach EU law. Given that many other Polish farmers' demands have not yet been resolved, International Coalition to Protect the Polish Countryside (ICPPC) -one of the farmers’ protest leading organizations- has been calling upon the Polish government since 2016 to implement the postulates of the Belweder Declaration: “The Charter of Real Farming and Real Food” which outlines the key factors essential to maintaining both food security and food sovereignty in the country.