“The government continues to pay special attention to maintaining the stability of the domestic dairy sector. In addition to the December package of measures primarily affecting processors, we are also providing extraordinary assistance to producers who have found themselves in a difficult situation due to low purchase prices, and have therefore decided to provide a further HUF 2.43 billion in national support,” announced Minister of Agriculture István Nagy.
The minister emphasized that EU and domestic subsidies will arrive earlier than usual for the farmers concerned, while further effective measures are expected from the government following consultations with industry players.
The final payment of production-linked dairy cow subsidies is currently underway, but at the same time, the Ministry of Agriculture has also created the conditions for the payment of an additional HUF 2.43 billion (around EUR 6.39 million) in national subsidies to producers.
The subsidy, which will be disbursed by the Hungarian State Treasury in the near future, will affect approximately 2,300 farmers. It is also a direct response to the milk market crisis affecting the entire European Union, including Hungary, with particular regard to the persistently low milk purchase prices, which are causing significant income losses for those involved in the sector, he added.
The purpose of the extraordinary aid is to mitigate the adverse effects of EU-level overproduction and the ongoing EU–China trade conflict, which has contributed to the market imbalance.
Since the end of December, China has imposed provisional tariffs of 22–42.7% on EU dairy products in direct response to European tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. Although Hungary exports only a limited amount of milk to China, these measures have indirect effects on domestic prices.
The subsidies are intended to partially compensate dairy farmers for their losses and to ensure the survival and operation of livestock farms until the market stabilizes.
At Hungary’s initiative, the serious situation on the milk market was also included on the agenda of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council, as a result of which the Commission is also monitoring developments in the sector with increased attention,”
said István Nagy.
The minister emphasized that producers can count on the government, which is committed to supporting the strategically important dairy sector with all possible means within its national competence, while making maximum use of EU rules, thereby contributing to the security of domestic food supply, preserving rural jobs, and strengthening the market position of Hungarian dairy products, even in a European market environment that can change drastically in a matter of moments. For this reason, the Ministry of Agriculture, in consultation with other ministries, is considering further interventions and initiating their introduction, the minister concluded.
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Via MTI, agraragazat.hu; Featured photo: Pexels
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