The value-creating developments in agriculture are implemented one after the other

(Photo: AM/István Fekete)

The Minister of Agriculture would ban the sale of straw bales to power plants. The head of the ministry added that before the decision is made, they will still consult with the people involved, whom they want to compensate. István Nagy praised the conscious soil cultivation of Aranyeső Kft., which belongs to the Kánya Agricultural Company Group, and its crop cultivation, which is looking for a way out in difficult market conditions. The Hungarian-owned company built a modern dryer with a HUF 1.2 billion investment, including a HUF 482 million grant from the Rural Development Program, and significantly increased its storage capacity, he added. The minister recalled that in the past three years, “humanly trying” challenges and difficulties have hit agriculture in a series. “You are the way out with your knowledge, experience, and manual labor,” he said. He added that the government is behind the farmers with all its strength, resources and measures so that they can meet the new challenges. He reminded that in the current development cycle, the Hungarian government is the only European government to provide maximum national co-financing to EU funds, thus tripling the support possibilities. In addition to resources, good specialists and renewable agricultural university training also help agriculture to find a way out, he said. He also spoke about the fact that behind the Ukrainian goods flooding the Hungarian market are international capital investors who will not “stand still”, so Hungarian agriculture must become more competitive and find a solution in line with local conditions and opportunities. He emphasized that “every single grain of grain that we bring to the market without processing is a missed opportunity”. “Grain should be sold in skins,” he said, referring to the potential of livestock farming. He mentioned that several of his fellow ministers from Western Europe have stated that they wish to use EU subsidies to reduce their livestock production, which opens up further opportunities for Hungarians. “We don’t want to downsize, but to develop our livestock breeding by tripling the resources in order to regain our position in the market according to our capabilities,” he said. He mentioned that 3 million Muslims live in Europe, their demand for lamb meat and dietary fashion trends also create opportunities, he pointed out. István Nagy called one of the most important problems that the number of microorganisms living in the soil has decreased by 90 percent in the last 50 years. “We are in the last hour to preserve the fertility of our soils,” he said.

Owner László Kőszegi said that the new investment is a high-quality technological development, thanks to which the company’s production has become more efficient and environmentally friendly

Their goal is to create value, so they reinvest the generated income. They invest in preserving the productivity of the land, cooperate with nearly 200 farmers in the region, and annually pay 550 million forints into the state coffers through various taxes, he listed. Zoltán Gergácz, managing director, told MTI that the Kányai Mezőgazdasági company group owned by the Kőszeg family farms almost 7,000 hectares of land south of Siófok, in the area of disadvantaged villages in Somogy. The company, which employs 85 people, achieved a profit of more than HUF 1 billion in 2022 with sales revenue of HUF 9.5 billion, but last year’s result was “good if it breaks even,” he said. Since Ukraine can market the corn, wheat, barley and sunflower produced by the company group cheaper, they are looking for a way out. In the spirit of this, they are also preparing to harvest 17 types of plants this year, including sugar beets, poppies and industrial peas – said the manager.

MTI/AM