AM: We owe farmers gratitude and thanks for their work

The Minister explained on his Facebook page that Hungarian agriculture is ending a year full of serious challenges, but farmers have shown perseverance, diligence and unity throughout the year. The government has made significant efforts to preserve producers’ liquidity by paying advances and providing special support for small farms, as well as by providing numerous means of damage mitigation. In addition to the ever-increasing payment of direct subsidies, area-based and animal-based rights to farmers, the government has therefore published 60 calls for proposals to support the competitiveness and productivity of agriculture and the food industry, with a total of almost 1,641 billion forints in funding – the announcement states.

Support decisions have been made in the case of the most eagerly awaited and most popular investment calls

This year alone, the ministry has awarded more than 730 billion forints in support for investments to stimulate economic development. Of these, it is worth highlighting that more than 800 projects were supported within the framework of the development of food and processing plants, in the amount of approximately 450 billion forints. A decision was made to support the renovation of almost 1,100 livestock farms, in the amount of more than 140 billion forints. A positive decision was made on a 105 billion forint subsidy for the horticultural sector, in the case of about 2,100 applications, and in the spirit of generational change, the assessment of support applications related to farm transfer has started – the minister added, according to the statement. The Ministry of Agriculture also provided the appropriate resources in a timely manner for producers choosing sustainable farming practices, as support decisions were made for the new Agri-Environmental Payments (AKG) and Organic Farming Support (ÖKO) programs. In the case of AKG, more than 19,600 applications were supported, covering almost 1.6 million hectares of land. In the case of ÖKO, 5,700 farmers, covering 375,000 hectares of land. Since both are five-year target programs, the total amount of possible subsidies, which were decided on this year, exceeded 1,000 billion forints for the former, and more than 380 billion forints for the latter, provided that all relevant commitments are maintained – explained István Nagy.

The minister emphasized that the advance payment for direct subsidies, which form the basis of producer liquidity, was higher than ever before

By the end of 2025, the 154 thousand clients who submitted the Single Application received 546 billion forints. This amount exceeded the advance paid last year by approximately 107 billion forints. Rural development payments, which were implemented within the framework of the closing Rural Development Program and the Common Agricultural Policy Strategy, reached 700 billion forints. Targeted measures helped farmers who suffered losses due to natural events or the animal and plant health epidemic situation, as well as sectors that found themselves in a difficult situation due to market crises. According to István Nagy, domestic agriculture had a successful year overall, despite the fact that climate change, market conditions, and animal and plant health conditions also posed numerous obstacles. According to the information, next year the government will continue to make support decisions and announce new calls, and they will strive to make final payments of direct support as early as possible. In addition, the government intends to reduce the burden on agricultural enterprises and help their work with new regulatory interventions and administrative simplifications, strengthening the resilience of the agricultural economy. This is especially necessary in the shadow of the Russian-Ukrainian war, as well as in light of the decisions and plans in Brussels, since the market outlook for 2026 is not encouraging either. “We are grateful to Hungarian farmers and food producers for continuously ensuring the country’s food supply of adequate quality and quantity despite all adversities, and therefore they can continue to count on the agricultural government as an ally,” the ministry’s statement concludes.

MTI