Open letter: The National Chamber of Agricultural Economics stands by the German farmers and agrees with their legitimate demands!

Due to the irresponsibility of the German government, farmers have to face a tax burden of 900 million euros. This could increase further in the future, as the left-liberal government coalition would also increase the carbon tax on fossil fuels, making diesel even more expensive for farmers, in addition to the currently high energy prices. The situation in Germany is clear: the coalition does not respect the people who contribute significantly to the maintenance and food supply of the country with their work and taxes. The price of the irresponsible policy will be paid by all German residents, as Germany’s agricultural foreign trade deficit may be 21 billion euros as a result, which means a higher deficit than ever before. The left-liberal German government would make German farmers pay the price for its own economic irresponsibility!

The National Chamber of Agrarian Economy stands up for the German farming community

The German government is destroying one of its country’s economic and existential cornerstones, the sustainable, crisis-resistant and reliable food supply. Recently, a one-week farmer demonstration action began, during which, expressing the dissatisfaction of the farming community, most of Germany was paralyzed for a longer or shorter time. We agree with the German farmers and encourage them to persistently assert their interests, as the difficulties they are experiencing due to climate protection excesses are causing problems for the farming community working for our food throughout Europe. The demonstration with hundreds of thousands of tractors and other vehicles can be seen all over Europe. The Hungarian farming society assures German farmers and the workers in the logistics sector connected to them of full solidarity and support. We call the attention of European decision-makers to finally see the danger caused by their unreasonable green measures and climate protection pressure on farmers during the current demonstrations, which also endangers the entire European Union farming community! Especially in view of the fact that certain German politicians are already advocating uniform rules for agricultural diesels throughout Europe. Farmers are dependent on the price of diesel, unable to produce with only electric tractors. Such a uniform regulation threatens the sustainable, crisis-resistant and reliable food supply throughout the continent.

Self-destruction is familiar to us: with the unlimited import of Ukrainian agricultural products, the leaders of the European Union have already pushed Hungarian and Central European agriculture into a crisis

The Hungarian economic society, which has suffered billions in damage, can only be protected from the market destruction of Ukrainian products by the import ban – introduced under its own state authority, but also necessary at the EU level. Ukraine’s accession to the EU would only exacerbate the damage caused by the reckless and irresponsible European Union policy. Uniform agricultural diesel rules would put additional obstacles in the way of farmers, once again depriving them of the opportunity to compete globally against cheaper and lower-quality competition from other countries. According to the National Chamber of Agrarian Economy, it is unacceptable that the irresponsible politicians of the European Union demand more and more and more drastic measures from the farmers without transition, without any transition, while they do not provide meaningful support or innovative solutions. We consider it important to emphasize that for the vast majority of European Union farmers, the increasingly strict and economically unreasonable EU regulations, the Green Deal and Farm to Fork driven by the ideology of the greens, the unenforceable animal protection regulations and restrictions on the use of pesticides represent a complex challenge that threatens not only the the prosperity of economic society, but also Europe’s reliable, sustainable, healthy and crisis-proof food supply.

Taking all of this into account, the National Chamber of Agrarian Economy welcomes the exemplary commitment of the Hungarian government to the Hungarian farming community

The Hungarian government supports farmers in a variety of ways, for example by maintaining the possibility of reclaiming the diesel excise tax, thus ensuring the competitiveness of the sector, while also providing an innovative response to climate, environmental and animal welfare challenges with appropriate support programs. The previous decision of the Hungarian government, in which it increased the co-financing rate of EU rural development resources to the maximum level of 80%, remains exemplary. This also ensures that the insufficient amount of EU community funds is replaced to a meaningful level, even at the cost of national sacrifices, and provides the key livestock and food industry sectors with the volume of support necessary for their development. The economic policy prudence of the Hungarian government and its commitment to economic society are an example for the German federal government as well.

Here again, we wish for a lot of perseverance and protests and negotiations leading to results to the German farmers!

Balázs Győrffy – President, National Chamber of Agriculture, Hungary