The amount of funds available for rural development has tripled

Farming and the horticulture sector are both important (Photo: Pixabay)

Tamás Tarpataki is the XI. In his presentation on Hungarian Paprika Day, he said that even within the growing support framework, the proportion of resources that can be used for economic development has increased, and it seems that there is a serious demand for this from investors. The government aims to make farming a profitable and socially recognized occupation, and agriculture to become attractive to young people. The Ministry of Agriculture wants to make the regulation and support system simpler, more traceable and clearer, he said.

The framework for horticulture was increased

Speaking about the horticulture sector, the politician explained: HUF 71 billion was awarded to support about 4,300 developments in the sector until 2020, and HUF 54 billion of this was paid out. For the 135 applications submitted and supported for the construction of greenhouses, 20 billion forints were awarded and 15 billion forints were paid, the purchase of horticultural machinery and support for the construction of cold stores were of the same magnitude. In the new EU budget cycle, a HUF 30 billion budget was announced for the modernization of horticultural plants, but due to the extraordinary interest, this was increased to HUF 68 billion, and 321 producers received support decisions. Thanks to the planting subsidies, 2,500-2,600 new plantations can be created, and HUF 26 billion can be spent on the purchase of machinery and equipment – explained Tamás Tarpataki.

Water management was given a prominent role

In the announced tenders, 765 applications for the purchase of irrigation equipment and tools were supported with approximately HUF 50 billion. For these developments, the EU requirement is to reduce water consumption by 10-15 percent, but this is a common interest for competitiveness and environmental reasons – emphasized the deputy state secretary. He also explained that in the case of these developments, the intensity of the support is 50 percent, but in the case of irrigation communities – for the creation of which funds are also available – 70 percent can be provided. He mentioned that support can also be requested for agricultural insurance premiums, the annual amount of which has risen to HUF 14.3 billion. As he said, Hungary was the first in the EU to develop a crisis insurance system, which covers 69.9 percent of the loss of income caused by the damage incident afterwards, and 70 percent of the fund’s resources are covered by rural development support.

MTI