The maize crop has been damaged by drought on 235,000 hectares and the sunflower seed crop on 125,000 hectares, the minister said. And the 160,000 hectares declared in the Southern Great Plain shows the special vulnerability of the region, he added.



In recent years, the damage mitigation fund has been topped up to HUF 35bn from state, producer and EU sources. Farmers took out drought insurance with premium subsidies for 715,000 hectares this year, he said.

Tenders to be called soon as part of the Rural Development Programme will support the introduction of water-saving irrigation techniques, the optimisation of irrigation systems and the development and reconstruction of water-saving irrigation infrastructure.

So far, more than 1,200 irrigation projects have been supported within the framework of the programme with a combined HUF 177bn, the minister said.

Source: 
MTI - The Hungarian News Agency, founded in 1881.

*********************************

You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories via our Facebook page: 
Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoop’s groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary

You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters

Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here!