István Nagy: We owe farmers gratitude and thanks for their work

(Photo: AM)

The Minister explained that the Hungarian agriculture sector 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 the liquidity of producers by paying advances and providing special support for small farms, as well as by using numerous tools for damage mitigation. In addition to the ever-increasing payment of direct subsidies, area-based and animal-based rights to farmers, we have 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.

Support decisions have been made in 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 that stimulate economic development. Of these, it is worth highlighting that we supported more than 800 projects in the development of food and processing plants, totaling approximately 450 billion forints. We decided to support the renovation of almost 1,100 livestock farms, totaling 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. 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, we supported more than 19,600 applications, covering almost 1.6 million hectares. In the case of ÖKO, 5,700 farmers, covering 375,000 hectares. Since in both cases we are talking about a five-year target program, the total amount of possible subsidies, which were decided on this year, exceeded 1,000 billion forints for the former, and also 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. Next year, we will continue to make support decisions and announce new calls, and we will strive to make final payments of direct support as early as possible. In addition, we intend 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.

AM