It is a historical opportunity for Hungary that the strategic plan related to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was accepted by the European Commission – said the Minister of Agriculture during his press conference in Budapest on Tuesday.
István Nagy emphasized, a favourable agreement was reached on EU agricultural and rural development grants for Hungary in the period up to 2027. The European Commission considers sustainability more important than ever in the development of the new agricultural policy, while Hungary considers food security and rural development to be essential as well. The government therefore endeavoured to balance environmental and competitive aspects – the Minister said.
EU funds together with an outstanding financial contribution, means more help than ever for rural development, food processing and farmers – said István Nagy, who expects the renewal of natural resources and also the improvement of the environmental status of the country. Thanks to subsidies, Hungarian agriculture and food industry will be more competitive, will produce more efficiently and will resist crises or even climate challenges – said the Minister.
The CAP’s strategic plan contains terms of use of HUF 2,485 billion of direct payments for the development of the agricultural sector and HUF 2,891 billion of rural development support.
Land-based subsidies will continue to be granted, the base amount may be around EUR 147 per hectare (almost HUF 60 thousand). Small and medium-sized farms are also entitled to redistribution support, between 1 and 10 hectares, the amount can be EUR 80 per hectare (more than HUF 30 thousand), between 10 and 150 hectares, it can be EUR 40 per hectare in addition to the basic payment. Young farmers can expect a much higher amount than previously, expectedly EUR 92 per hectare (almost HUF 40 thousand) as land-based additional payment, in case of a family holding up to 300 hectares. Farmers can also participate in the agroecology program, which provides additional grants for environmental and climate protection commitments.
Required institutional, executive and IT preparations have already been started to implement the new support system, the efficient use of sources calls everyone involved for planning and rethinking – said the Minister of Agriculture.
Zsolt Feldman, the State Secretary for Agriculture and Rural Development, said that with the subsidies, the productivity of the Hungarian agriculture could increase by one and a half times, value added could double by the end of the decade. Exports of almost EUR 10 billion (HUF 4 thousand billion) at the beginning of the decade could rise to EUR 15 billion by 2030.
The State Secretary emphasized, more than half of the rural development funds, almost HUF 1500 billion, will finance economic development, more than HUF 1000 billion will be allocated for sustainability purposes. Both mean significant increase, compared to the previous ones, as well as the framework expenses of agricultural research and innovation which is doubled.