István Nagy: 2025 is the year of breakthrough in agriculture

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The minister highlighted that in comparison with the EU, the productivity of Hungarian agriculture has achieved the fifth highest growth according to the total productivity indicator and the seventh highest growth according to the indicator indicating territorial productivity in the past decade and a half. The proportion of processed products within agricultural exports increased from 62 percent to 72 percent. Farmers, rural enterprises and local governments received almost 585 billion forints from the rural development program last year. This amount was provided predominantly by the exceptionally high, 80 percent budget co-financing.

The largest part, more than 264 billion forints, was related to agricultural investment calls

The highest drawdown was in the renewal of livestock farms, the development of food industry plants, precision farming and water management projects – he explained. He announced that in the current agricultural support cycle, 32 calls for proposals were issued in 2024 and the first two months of 2025 with an amount of about 1,260 billion forints. The call for proposals for the development of processing plants and livestock farms was particularly popular. Applications for food and feed processing, animal husbandry and horticulture received support requests of 1,778 billion forints, which is four to five times higher than the budget amount. He said that 40 calls may be issued this year, and a total of 790 billion forints is available for payments related to agricultural and rural development support. For the 2024 unified applications, 500 billion forints were paid to 151 thousand people under 27 legal titles by mid-February. The state treasury will make the final payments on a schedule from March, and about 300 billion forints will still be received by farmers.

István Nagy noted that the EU side is perceptible in its need to change agricultural policy, to subordinate some of its key elements to budgetary and enlargement policy goals

He called it unacceptable to have to give up area-based subsidies, because this source is vital for food security. EU agriculture must be competitive, crisis-resistant, sustainable, farmer-centered and knowledge-based, and the proportions of green measures must be determined in such a way that they do not hinder production and that safe, high-quality food can be produced while being environmentally sustainable. The message of the EU agricultural ministers is clear, the new support system must be farmer-friendly, that is, much simpler – he emphasized.

The minister highlighted the effects of climate change among the challenges, urging dialogue within the profession to solve it

The livelihood of many farmers and the future of agriculture in the Carpathian Basin depend on adaptation, therefore, in the coming period, it will be particularly important to encourage water-conserving farming practices. Calls supporting irrigation development support technical solutions that take into account the limitations of surface and subsurface supplies, helping to save water resources. István Nagy is confident that as many farmers as possible will seize the opportunities, plan their future with shared thinking and find good answers to the challenges. The government believes in the strategic importance of food production, the social importance of agriculture, and the expertise of producers. According to the Minister’s calculations, by 2030, Hungarian agriculture could be among the top European producers in all respects thanks to accelerating developments. At the event, the Chairman and CEO of OTP expressed his confidence that rural development subsidies will be put to good use and will help modern products and sustainable investments. According to Sándor Csányi, producers must switch to precision farming, manage their resources efficiently, and OTP is ready to lend them money. The Agricultural College, founded by Sándor Csányi in 2012 and consisting of academics and representatives of professional organizations, awarded the OTP Award for Agriculture this year to Pankotai Agrár Zrt. in the crop production category, to Földesi Rákóczi Mezőgazdasági Kft. in the animal husbandry category, to Csizmadi Farm in the horticulture category, and to the Kalocsa Group in the food industry category. The Hunland Group received the award for its international activities, while the Trans-Oil Group received the award as a subsidiary bank partner.

MTI