There will be no shortage of high-quality Hungarian fish, according to professional organizations

By: STA Date: 2025. 12. 18. 09:00

🎧 Hallgasd a cikket: Nyelv: Sebesség: 1.05×

Although the drought caused serious damage to domestic fish farms this year, there will still be plenty of fresh, Hungarian freshwater fish on the Christmas table. According to the overview published on Tuesday by the National Chamber of Agriculture (NAK) and the Hungarian Aquaculture and Fisheries Professional Association (MA-HAL), carp is still the most sought-after fish species, and most buyers prefer ready-to-cook products.

(Photo: Pixabay)

Drought is a recurring problem in domestic fish production every year; in addition to the lack of water, the quality of existing waters is also deteriorating, and the water temperature rises rapidly during hot summers. In addition to the lack of precipitation, farmers also have to deal with fish losses caused by birds every year. Despite this, the domestic Christmas fish supply is ensured this year as well, and consumers can choose from high-quality fish products – the overview stated. Fish farms sell 55-60 percent of the fish they produce for consumption during the Christmas period, they highlighted.

The range this year also ranges from live fish to products with various degrees of processing (horseshoe fish, fillets).

Today, customers expect a basic product without bones, fish with scales are slowly disappearing from the market, and only a few people buy live fish anymore. True to tradition, carp is expected to be the best seller this season, but more and more people are looking for roach and grass carp, while consumers who are wary of bones prefer predatory species, catfish and pike perch. The level of domestic fish consumption is not very high, and last year – according to fish farmers – demand shrank further, which can be primarily attributed to high inflation. The decline in the 2024 Christmas season will hopefully not be followed by another decline in demand this year. Fish farms hope that consumption will remain at the level of previous years in the period before the holidays, the report said.

MTI