Recent years have seen drastic changes in the structure of Polish agriculture. More than one million farms have disappeared and the main production focus has changed. The share of farms with animal production and mixed production has decreased significantly. Livestock-free farms now dominate, accounting for more than half of all farms in Poland. This is due to the low profitability of animal husbandry in agriculture and the high labour input. Livestock production has withdrawn particularly from small farms. The consequence of this process is a decrease in the organic matter content of soils, a negative balance of plant nutrients and a reduction in crop diversity with a pronounced dominance of cereals. Non-livestock farms are attempting to compensate by growing intercrops and leaving crop residues in the field. However, domesticated animals were also important in the use of perennial forage crops and permanent grassland important for CO2 sequestration.