While ties between local food producers in rural Poland and consumers in urban areas have been increasingly lost over the past decades, in recent years a shift is taking place. Awareness grows that smallholder farmers should be supported by buying locally made food products. During the COVID pandemic, more and more consumers have started looking for tech-based solutions to order local fresh food and have it delivered on their doorsteps safely and quickly.

Pora na Pola is an online marketplace that addresses this demand by selling sustainable food products sourced from local small and medium-sized suppliers. Based in rural Poland, these producers provide organic vegetables, fruits, cheese, jam, wines and meat, among other products that are sold on the Pola na Pola e-grocery platform. Through a rigorous quality control process, Pora na Pola ensures that no pesticides or synthetic food additives are used in the production process.

Today, the social enterprise works with 100 local farmers and artisans. It offers them training on branding, sales, and marketing and ensures that they receive the majority of the final retail price. That way, they can scale up their sales and bring in stable income to sustain their families. Meanwhile, thanks to the short supply chains, consumers in Polish cities receive their healthy and fresh food products within 24 hours of purchase.

Programme support:

Through the Poland and Romania accelerator, Pora na Pola will be able to invest in improving the quality of training and resources it can provide for its suppliers.

NESsT and IKEA Social Entrepreneurship will also support the social enterprise to develop impact tracking metrics and tools to meet its sustainability goals, including non-biodegradable waste reduction, lowering carbon emissions, and increasing its number of certified suppliers.

In addition, we will also work with Pora na Pola to include suppliers as shareholders of the company.

”

We are excited to work together with NESsT and IKEA Social Entrepreneurship to improve the quality of life of small farmers, which will also result in increased sales at Pora na Pola. Our growth potential as well as the know-how and funds of our partners can maximize the positive impact on local communities when scaling our business. 

Adrian Piwko, founder and CEO, Pora na Pola.