European Commission proposes €10.8 million in emergency aid to Hungarian farmers to mitigate damage caused by extreme weather

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The European Commission is proposing to mobilise emergency aid worth almost €50 million to help fruit, vegetable and nut farmers in six member states, including Hungary, who have suffered serious damage due to extreme weather events in recent months.

According to the proposal, governments can match the aid with up to 200 percent from national resources

The emergency aid comes from the EU’s Agricultural Reserve Fund, which was created as part of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and is intended to provide rapid assistance to producers affected by market disruptions or exceptional events. In addition to Hungary, the aid will be provided to Bulgaria (€7.4 million), Latvia (€4.2 million), Lithuania (€1.1 million), Poland (€14.8 million) and Romania (€11.5 million). According to the Commission, late frosts, followed by hail and heavy rains, have destroyed a significant part of the fruit, vegetable, nut and seed crops in several Member States this year, which clearly shows the extent to which climate change is affecting agriculture.

The financial support must be paid to the affected farmers by 30 April 2026 at the latest, so that the aid reaches the affected as soon as possible

In the current CAP period, 2023-2027, the agricultural reserve provides at least €450 million per year to deal with crisis situations. The Commission plans to double the crisis fund in the next agricultural policy cycle 2028-2034, thereby increasing the resilience of European farmers and the food sector to market and natural challenges, the body said in a statement.

MTI