B2RLaw launches Agriculture and Agrifood Practice

B2RLaw has launched an Agriculture and Agrifood Practice co-led by Partners Aleksandra Polak and Roman Iwański. In doing so, B2RLaw is one of the few law firms in Poland and the wider CEE region to have a fully dedicated and stand-alone Agriculture and Agrifood Practice.

Poland’s agriculture sector is vital to the European and Global market because it produces a variety of agricultural, horticultural and animal origin products, and the industry will further grow due to policies encouraging a green and digital circular economy. The surface area of agricultural land in Poland is 15.4 million ha, which constitutes nearly 50% of the total area of the country. In 2019, Poland was the 3rd largest producer of apples globally; the 4th largest producer of mushrooms after China, Japan and the US; the 2nd largest produce of rye after Germany; the 7th largest producer of sugar beets; and the 8th largest producer of potatoes.

B2RLaw’s team has a wealth of experience in advising on the whole range of the agribusiness and food value chain. B2RLaw advises the full spectrum of industry players including companies involved in agribusiness and food production, processing and distribution, agrichemicals manufacturers, processors of agricultural commodities, manufacturers of farming equipment, alternative fuel producers, soft commodities traders and financial institutions.

With the growing use of technology in the agriculture industry, B2RLaw is one of the few law firms that really understands AgriTech. Whether a start-up, corporate or landowner looking to either deploy or invest in AgriTech, B2RLaw’s multi-disciplinary team assists on everything from fundraising and investment, M&A, IP protection, regulation, commercial contracts to employment issues.

Aleksandra Polak advises, “When B2RLaw was formed through merger in June 2020, we were astonished at the huge amount of experience that the combined team had in relation to agriculture, Agrifood and AgriTech. With expert lawyers joining the firm since, this experience has been enhanced further. This, combined with a unique set of international relations and partnership with the leading international law firms for agriculture, meant that it was a natural step for us to launch a dedicated practice. In view of my background, my particular focus is on M&A, whether that be connecting Polish agri-businesses with specialist international VC or PE funds, or general industry M&A and joint ventures. At the same time, the growth of AgriTech (an area we excel in) is very exciting. A lot is said about FinTech with the global industry expected to reach over EUR 300 billion in 2022. However, the AgriTech industry is expected to reach EUR 130 billion in the same time-frame”.

Roman Iwański comments, “Food and agribusiness form a USD 5 trillion global industry that is only getting bigger. If current trends continue, by 2050, the industry would grow by between 70-100%. Sensing an opportunity, strategic and financial investors are racing to capture value from technological innovation and discontinuities in food and agriculture. Since the early 2000s, global investments in the food and agribusiness sector have grown sixfold. Poland lies at the heart of the global industry. Our Agriculture and Agrifood Practice is able to cater for all the demands of the growing industry and we look forward to assisting Polish agribusinesses in their growth, as well as international investors, partners and technology suppliers in their interaction with the Polish and CEE market”.