The digitalization of agriculture is being encouraged using the widest possible set of tools

(Photo: AM/István Fekete)

Zsolt Feldman spoke at the PREGA conference and exhibition, the professional forum for precision farming and agricultural digitalization in Hungary, which was held for the tenth time this year, that 30 calls were issued last year that largely included opportunities to encourage digitalization. The system has a built-in information-gathering option, a digital questionnaire linked to investment applications, which can help those who fill it out to highlight the weaknesses of the given farm, economy or enterprise or the areas for development in terms of digitalization, he added. The State Secretary said about the details of the scheme that directly encourages the support of the digital transition of agricultural farms – which is expected to be available for applications in the fourth quarter – that the available budget is 97.5 billion forints.

The State Secretary said that the maximum amount of non-refundable support will be 150 million forints per project, with an intensity of 50 percent

He highlighted that, unlike in the past, this year they will also be able to support the interest costs of related investment loans. Zsolt Feldman emphasized: within the framework of the tender, it will be possible to purchase agricultural power machines, work machines, self-propelled harvesting machines suitable for site-specific work, as well as to make existing or newly purchased agricultural power and work machines suitable for site-specific cultivation, but up to a maximum of 20-30 million forints. The support also creates an opportunity for regular and systematic farm-level data collection, investments necessary for the creation of databases and data connections, and the use of services related to precision farming. As he said: it is certain that the submission of a farm-level digital plan will be mandatory, and 24 months will be available for implementation, but there are still points of the support opportunity that have not yet been decided – he added. He recalled that the Innovation and Digitalization Support Unit has started operating within the framework of the National CAP Network, whose task is, among other things, to facilitate the networking of actors dealing with digitalization, to monitor the activities of actors providing precision services, and to promote the use of innovative digital tools and machines, the production data collected by them, and the application of the data-based decision-making process. The State Secretary mentioned that a call for proposals entitled “Support for European Innovation Partnership Cooperation” is being prepared to support bottom-up innovation initiatives – including those targeting digitalization solutions.

The preliminary plans include an average of 330-420 thousand euros per project, and the call is expected to be published in the fourth quarter of 2025

In his welcoming speech, Bence Bolyki, CEO of Agroinform.hu, the conference organizer, recalled that the portal has been offering information on the latest agricultural trends and market offerings in a structured, filterable, moderated form for 20 years. The PREGA conference and exhibition has been ensuring that participants can meet in person those shaping the agriculture of the present and near future for 10 years, and that they can obtain information directly about agricultural digitalization. He announced that a memorial award will be established in memory of László Farkas, a farmer in Zimány, Somogy County, who was a pioneer of precision farming in Hungary. More than 700 participants of the two-day PREGA event held in Kecskemét this year will be able to attend around 120 presentations by more than 100 speakers, while also getting to know in practice the latest developments and solutions related to the digital transformation of agriculture, exhibited on site.

MTI