Around three thousand agricultural machines were deployed in the protests.Continue reading
Farmers in Hungary are also taking to the streets to call for changes to government agricultural policy in a three-day demonstration planned for the weekend, Economx reports.
Farmers and beekeepers have reserved two locations in the capital for the demonstration, scheduled to last from Saturday to Monday. The farmers will be gathering in Népliget Park, and the section of the lower embankment on the Pest riverside between the Parliament and the Chain Bridge will serve as the actual site of the demonstration.
They will march into the city center on Sunday with tractors, and on Monday they plan to hand over a petition to the Minister of Agriculture.
The demonstration is aimed at drawing attention to the fact that it is becoming increasingly difficult for small and medium-sized businesses in Hungary to survive. According to Népszava, besides low purchase prices, the unpredictability of the legal environment and subsidies are causing difficulties for protesting farmers. “We do not want to bring down the government, we just want the agricultural sector to be put in order, because if everything stays like this, four-fifths of farmers could go bankrupt next year,” said one farmer, explaining why they are organizing a protest. The aim of the demonstration is not only to raise awareness but also to get farmers to set up a “real representative body” to replace the farmers’ association MAGOSZ, the farmer added.
Beekeepers have also joined the farmers, because the authorization of imports of Ukrainian honey has put them in a difficult situation.
A beekeeper expressed disappointment that the government had lifted the ban on imports of Ukrainian honey, explaining to Népszava that the government’s reason for lifting the import ban was that honey processing plants working for export did not have enough domestic raw material. The beekeeper said that there is enough honey, but the factories are not willing to pay for the more expensive Hungarian honey. “The normal purchase price for a kilogram of mixed honey would be around 1,500 forints (3.80 euros / 1 EUR=395 HUF), but the factories are only willing to pay 600-650, or at best 700 forints,” the beekeeper explained.
Despite a lot of supportive feedback, it is not known how many people will participate, so it is unclear how big the demonstration will be.
Via Economx, Népszava; Featured image: MTI/Balázs Attila