State Plant Health
and Seed Inspection Service

The beginnings of organised plant protection in Poland can be traced back to the resolution of the Regional Parliament of 28 September 1889 that authorized the Regional Department in Galicia to start a campaign that involved declaring health status of fields, recording and eradication of pests, as well as scientific study of pests and diseases of crop plants. This campaign was initiated by Maksymilian Nowicki, professor of the Jagiellonian University.
1904 saw the creation of Science Laboratory for Plant Protection at the Warsaw Horticultural Association. As it was poorly equipped, its main task was to record pests and give advice. In 1912 the Laboratory changed its name to Plant Protection Station. Nearly at the same time, a plant protection unit was created at Cracow’s Regional Agricultural Station (the World War put an end to its existence).
In 1918 a new agricultural science unit was created: State Research Institute of Agriculture in Puławy. A Plant Protection Division was created at the Institute. This Division played the role of a Plant Protection Station for Lubelskie Voivodeship until 1934. Another important plant protection unit was the Plant Diseases Department at the State Agricultural Science Institute in Bydgoszcz. It had a network of correspondents responsible for record-keeping. The Department was performing scientific work, mainly on potato wart disease.

Since 1921, as a result of increasing prevalence of various diseases and pests, new units were being systematically created to protect crops. It was in 1921 that Plant Protection Section was established in Lviv, later on transformed into Plant Protection Station. Next, a Plant Protection Station was created in 1922 in Toruń. On 1st July 1925 the Silesian Plant Protection Station was officially opened; its office was located at the State Agricultural School in Cieszyn. The direct reason for launching this institution was the finding of potato wart disease in Śląskie Voivodeship. Then, Plant Protection Stations were created in Poznań (1925), Cracow (1927), Vilnius – for Wileńskie and Nowogródzkie Voivodeships – (1928), Łuck (1928), Łódź (1930) and Lublin (1934). As of 6 August 1934 when the agreement between the Government of Poland and the Senate of the Free City Gdańsk entered into force, the plant protection service of Gdańsk (Plant Protection Station there was created on 1 July 1928) was separated from the national plant protection service of Germany and adopted the entire Polish legislation on the control of plant pests and diseases. Next, stations were created in: Kielce (1935), Białystok and Brest (1937).

In 1919 the first Polish act on plant protection was adopted against woolly apple aphid. The legal basis that enabled further acts of Parliament to be issued quickly was the Regulation of the President of Poland of 19 November 1927 on the control of plant pests, diseases, and weeds (Dz. U. R.P. no. 108, item 922).

In 1939 the existing regulations on the control of potato wart disease, woolly apple aphid and field rodents were amended. In the same year a very important regulation was adopted on the control of weeds and plant pests that enabled heads of voivodeships to issue emergency regulations applicable locally.

Before the outbreak of WW2 the core of the Plant Protection Service consisted of 13 Voivodeship Plant Protection Stations. Initially, the stations were subordinate to agricultural associations, universities and experimental facilities. In 1928 the stations organisationally became part of agricultural chambers, but in terms of expertise they were subordinate to the Plant Protection Section of the State Research Institute of Agriculture in Puławy. The Plant Protection Service was represented at the Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Reforms by the Plant Protection Officer employed at the Agricultural Production Division.

It was already on 9 October 1944 that Plant Protection Inspectorate was established as part of the ministry of agriculture of the Polish National Liberation Committee residing in newly liberated Lublin. In 1945 the Inspectorate was relocated to Warsaw.
Right after the war the functioning of the Service was regulated by pre-war laws. By way of a circular of 30 November 1945 the Minister of Agriculture and Agricultural Reforms established the plant quarantine network. The network constituted an integral part of the Plant Protection Service and consisted of Plant Quarantine Inspectorates organisationally linked with Voivodeship Plant Protection Stations.

In 1945 the supreme authority of the Plant Protection Service was the Plant Protection Service Inspectorate attached to the Plant Production Division, Agricultural Production Department at the Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Reforms in Warsaw. The Inspectorate was divided into Potato Protection Unit (Anti-Colorado Beetle Unit) and Plant Quarantine Inspectorate coordinating and controlling plant quarantine inspectors.

In 1947, as a result of transformation of Voivodeship Agricultural Chambers and district agricultural offices into Farmers’ Mutual Assistance Association Plant Protection Stations were reorganised. However, in 1948 plant protection staff was shifted to become part of state administration. The next development in the history of plant protection was the Resolution no. 101/54 of the Council of Ministers of 3 March 1954 on the establishment of district and voivodeship agricultural authorities. In 1954 Voivodeship Agricultural Authorities were created as autonomous divisions of Voivodeship National Councils, and Plant Protection Stations were renamed into Voivodeship Plant Quarantine and Plant Protection Authorities that also included Border Plant Quarantine Points.

In parallel, Plant Protection Offices were created in district agricultural authorities, in terms of expertise subordinate to voivodeship units.

The Act of 19 November 1956 on the protection of crop plants against diseases, pests and weeds (Dz. U. no. 55, item 253) introduced obligatory control of diseases and pests of crop plants stipulated in a regulation of the Minister of Agriculture. Under the Act treatments required by competent agricultural authorities were financed by the State. This provision was mainly aimed against the Colorado beetle.
1958 saw another reorganisation. Plant Quarantine and Plant Protection Authorities were replaced by Voivodeship Quarantine and Plant Protection Stations and on district level Quarantine and Plant Protection Offices were created. Pursuant to Order no. 166 of the Minister of Agriculture of 21 November 1958 on the organisation of plant quarantine service in border points, since 1 January 1959 Border Plant Quarantine Points reported directly to the Plant Production Department at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
It was also in 1958 that Poland joined European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organisation (EPPO).
Another important stage of plant protection development was the Act of 16 February 1961 on protection of crop plants against diseases, pests and weeds (Dz. U. No. 10, item 55) that was in force for the next 35 years. Based on this Act the Minister of Agriculture issued several dozen of regulations and implementing orders complementing earlier documents and decisions. The regulations were making it obligatory for either arable land users and storage facilities operators, or agricultural administration units of National Councils (official control) to control specific diseases, pests and weeds.In 1965 the Minister of Agriculture issued Order of 22 April 1965 setting out conditions and procedure to issue licenses for placing on the market chemical plant protection products. From then on, only plant protection chemicals approved by the Minister of Agriculture could be placed on the market.

A breakthrough in the organisation of plant protection came with the entry into force of the Resolution no. 335/66 of the Council of Ministers of 22 October 1966. Pursuant to this Resolution and to the Order no. 200 of the Minister of Agriculture as of 23 of December 1966 Voivodeship Quarantine and Plant Protection Stations became organisationally independent of Voivodeship National Councils and received funding directly from the State budget.

Organisational changes in districts were even more serious. Quarantine and Plant Protection Offices were replaced by District Quarantine and Plant Protection Stations, each staffed by a crew of 4-7 people. After this reorganisation the Service became independent and the number of staff, as well as their salaries, increased. This organisational structure lasted until 30 June 1975. Another reorganisation came in 1975 when, following a reorganisation of the state administrative structure, by way of Resolution no. 120/75 of the Council of Ministers of 10 July 1975 on the organisation of Plant Quarantine and Plant Protection Service, and of Order no. 142 of the Minister of Agriculture of 19 July 1975 on the organisation and scope of responsibilities of Voivodeship Plant Quarantine and Plant Protection Stations, 49 Voivodeship Plant Quarantine and Plant Protection Stations were established, and since districts were no longer part of the administrative structure, District Stations were renamed into Local Offices. The period 1975-1995 may be regarded as the period of stability in plant protection. In 1988 by way of Order no. 33 of the Minster of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Economy of 27 June 1988 Plant Quarantine Inspectorate was created in Warsaw.

By way of decision of the Chief Inspector of the Plant Quarantine Inspectorate as of 1 June 1990 the Central Plant Quarantine Laboratory was established to diagnose plant diseases and pests, as well as weeds for the purposes of plant quarantine service.
In 1996, pursuant to Act of 12 July 1995 on the protection of crop plants the State Plant Protection Inspection was created as a special administration authority reporting to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Economy. SPPI was created by merging the Plant Quarantine Inspectorate and Voivodeship Plant Quarantine and Plant Protection Stations.

On 29 May 1996 Poland joined International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), an international agreement signed on in 1951 in Rome during the 6th Session of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) concerning international phytosanitary cooperation.

Until the end of 1998 SPPI consisted of: Main Inspectorate and 49 Voivodeship Inspectorates comprising 245 Local Offices and 23 border units.

Organisational structure, as well as powers and position of Inspection’s bodies changed significantly as a result of the national administration reform. The Act of 24 July 1998, the so-called powers act, changed the legal basis for the functioning of the Inspection. First and foremost, its name was changed from “State Plant Protection Inspection” into “Plant Protection Inspection”.

Seed production in Poland is proud of its 130 years of tradition. Crop plant breeding in Polish territories was started in the 19th century by W. Popławski who bred sarnowska wheat.

1820 – the first paper on the importance of buying healthy and pure seeds written by Jan Nepomucen Kurowski of Starołęka near Poznań entitled “On growing Egyptian rye and other foreign cereals”.

1876 – the first Seed Testing Station was organised by professors Antoni Sempołowski and Szczęsny Kudelka to test seed quality; the station was located in Żabików near Poznań and it was a part of Poznań’s Higher School of Agriculture.

1880 – the second Seed Testing Station was opened as part of the Museum of Industry and Agriculture in Warsaw thanks to efforts of professor Antoni Sempołowski. The business model of the Stations involved singing agreements with seed companies to test seed and guarantee its quality. Initially, only germination capacity and purity of cereal seed was tested.

1892 - the first laboratory assessment standards were published.

1897 – clover seed bags started to be sealed to guarantee the absence of dodder.

1903 – seed testing methods were harmonised in experimental stations of the Congress Kingdom. Apart from laboratory testing, various plant species and varieties were tested in field trials.

1924 – the first International Seed Testing Association (ISTA) Congress co-organised by Poland. 26 countries participated in the Congress.
The development of seed testing in Poland was interrupted by World War 2. After the war, seed inspection, including certification and testing, was the responsibility of agriculture divisions of Voivodeship National Councils that were establishing Seed Testing Stations.

1961 – Voivodeship Inspectorates of Planting Material Inspection were organised with Seed Testing Stations included as part of their organisational structure.

1962 – Seed Inspections were created in order to control the production and marketing of seed; they reported to the Minister of Agriculture and agricultural departments of Voivodeship National Councils. Seed inspectors were in charge of districts.

1964 – Poland was allowed to use international variety certification systems of OECD.

1975 – as a result of the reorganisation of state administration, Voivodeship Inspectorates of Planting Material Inspection were merged with Seed Inspections to create district inspectorates of the Seed Inspection Service.

1976 – Central Inspectorate of the Seed Inspection Service was created, a unit superior to district inspectorates that organised and managed seed certification and quality control.

1989 – Poland becomes a member of International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), Geneva, an organisation aiming at creating an efficient system to protect variety owners’ rights as intellectual property.

1996 – Poland becomes a member of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Paris. OECD seed systems for the certification of seed varieties guarantee seed quality and facilitate international seed trade.

1999 – after 23 years, as a result of administration reform, the Seed Inspection Service is reorganised. As of 1 January 1999 the Central Inspectorate of Seed Inspection was transformed into Main Inspectorate of Seed Inspection, and District Inspectorates into Voivodeship Inspectorates.

2002 – pursuant to Act of 1 March 2002 on changes in the organisation and functioning of central government bodies and their units and changing certain Acts (Dz. U. no. 25, item 253), as of 1 April 2002 the Plant Protection and Seed Inspection was created; Until 31 March 2002 there were two inspection services fulfilling seed- and plant protection-related responsibilities: Plant Protection Inspection and Seed Inspection.

2003 – on 26 June the Parliament adopted the Seed Act. In order to implement EU seed legislation the Act was amended many times and is still in force.

2004 – on 1 May 2004, by way of the Plant Protection Act of 18 December 2003 (Dz. U. of 2004 no. 11, item 94; no. 96 item 959) the Plant Protection and Seed Inspection became the State Plant Protection and Seed Inspection.

2010 – Central Laboratory of the Main Plant Protection and Seed Inspectorate celebrated its 20th anniversary.

2011 – in the second half of 2011 (1 July – 31 December) Poland presided the Council of the European Union. During Poland’s presidency of the European Union, the Chief Inspector of the State Plant Protection and Seed Inspection organised and chaired several EU Council working group meetings relating to the Inspection’s responsibilities.

2013 – on 28 January 2013 the Seed Act of 9 November 2012 (Dz. U. of 2012 item 1512) entered into force. The Act added new responsibilities for the Inspection, including supervision of use of genetically modified (GMO) planting material.

2020 - as of 1 July 2020, under the Act of 7 May 2020 amending the Fertilisers and Fertilisation Act, and the State Plant Protection and Seed Inspection Act, the Inspection took over from the Inspection for Commercial Quality of Agricultural and Food Articles the task of supervising the marketing of fertilisers, plant growing aids and fertilisers marked "EC FERTILISER".

2021 - as of 1 January 2021, the laboratory facilities of Voivodeship Plant Protection and Seed Inspectorates were incorporated into the Main Plant Protection and Seed Inspectorate. At present, these facilities are Branches and Branch Laboratories of the MPPSI Central Laboratory.

2022 - under the Act of 29 September 2022 amending the Fertilisers and Fertilisation Act, SPPSI was entrusted with the new tasks of supervising the marketing and making available on the market of EU fertilising products, as defined in Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 laying down rules on the making available on the market of EU fertilising products. The new legislation covers all types of harmonised fertilising products, i.e. not only mineral fertilisers, as before, but also organic and organic-mineral fertilisers, soil improvers, growing media, biostimulants from organic materials and waste, including food industry by-products, animal by-products, digestates and composts.

2023 - by way of the Facilitation of Preparation and Implementation Investments in Agricultural Biogas Plants and Operation Thereof Act of 13 July 2023 SPPSI was granted powers to supervise the marketing of domestic digestate products.