József Viski: separate, two-pillar common agricultural policy with its own budget must be preserved

Arriving at the meeting of the agricultural ministers of the EU member states, the State Secretary said: the Hungarian position must be represented on three priority topics at the council meeting. The most important issue is the future of the common agricultural policy, after it was recently made public what goals the European Commission has formulated for the next EU budget cycle. “We do not see the position of the CAP in the new budget, we do not see the maintenance of an independent agricultural policy as assured. We believe that the security of supply of Hungarian farmers, the food industry and the Hungarian population is not guaranteed if the burden of centrally determined EU regulations is not accompanied by adequate compensation,” he stressed. According to Viski, Hungary considers the Commission’s plans to abolish the two-pillar CAP and merge the resources into a single EU financial framework to be worrisome. “This does not guarantee the appropriate support amounts, and the implementation rules are not suitable for agricultural-specific support to reach farmers effectively,” he said.

He also touched on the second main agenda item of the council meeting, which deals with trade policy prospects

He said that Hungary is watching with serious concern the planned free trade agreements that the European Union intends to conclude with South American states and Ukraine. “We do not see the guarantees that would protect the Hungarian market from the effects of such imports. The livelihood and competitiveness of Hungarian farmers are not ensured,” he said. He recalled that as a result of recent rule changes, Ukrainian agricultural products – such as corn, eggs, honey and poultry – flow much more easily to the EU market, which causes “significant market distortion” for Hungarian producers. He added that Hungary still considers it justified to maintain restrictions on products coming from Ukraine and asks the Commission to ensure that bordering member states have the possibility of applying appropriate protective measures. “For us, the interests of Hungarian farmers come first,” he emphasized.

The third Hungarian-initiated agenda item of the council meeting concerns EU regulatory issues related to the treatment of a disease called golden yellows of grapes.

József Viski emphasized that as a result of climate change, the disease has already appeared in Hungary, therefore a review of the relevant rules is justified. “In recent years, several pesticides have been removed from the list of approved products, while access to certain agricultural subsidies is also linked to their use. In order to ensure effective protection, the applicability of these products must be reviewed, and we must do everything to protect Hungarian grape growers and the wine sector,” he said.

MTI