Climate impacts intensify as Hungary faces another dry summer

Cherry farming takes hit after hit

Much like sour cherries and apricots, cherries have been hit by the disasters caused by the changing climate. While in the past ten years, Hungary’s average annual cherry harvest yield from the 2.5 thousand hectares of plantations had been 8.6 to 12 thousand tons, this year’s harvest might be as low as 2 to 3 thousand tons. This is primarily due to the spring frosts during the cold snaps in April and May.

The domestic cherry produce arrived on the wholesale market in Week 20, with a price between €8-€8.75. Producer prices increased by 125% in the following four weeks, making cherries practically a luxury product on the market, Agrárszektor.hu reports.

€16 million in EU funding for farmers struggling with drought

Agrárágazat.hu reports that from the EU’s crisis fund, €16 million will be made available to small-scale Hungarian corn farmers whose lands were hit by drought last summer.

Hungary has turned to the EU’s crisis reserve after domestic compensation covered only part of farmers’ drought losses. In March, the European Commission approved €16.2 million in aid for Hungarian producers.

The Agriculture Ministry will direct the funds primarily to smallholders farming under 150 hectares. Only farmers with up to 50 hectares of corn will qualify for support under the new scheme. Eligible farmers can submit their support applications to the Hungarian State Treasury between July 1 and 15, 2025.

Subsidies for suspending poultry farming

The Ministry of Agriculture is offering financial support to waterfowl farmers who suspend operations for three years, reads a statement by the Ministry published this week. The measure aims to reduce the risk of avian influenza and improve biosecurity on farms.

The program targets regions like Bács-Kiskun, Békés, and Csongrád-Csanád counties, aiming to lower farm density and improve biosecurity in the poultry sector. The new €4.96 million support program compensates small producers who suspend poultry farming for three years in Avian influenza-prone areas. Farmers must cease all poultry activity on designated sites and cannot set up new waterfowl holdings nationwide. Aid is capped at €50 thousand per business, based on barn size and available de minimis support.

Hungarian labor productivity lags behind regional average

The research institute GKI has made a series of analyses on labor productivity in Hungary. Based on these, Trademagazin.hu reports that, labor productivity of Hungarian companies lags behind that of their regional competitors.

This is especially true for sectors prioritized by the government’s economic policy. According to the report, this raises the possibility that the current legal, financial, and support frameworks may need to be rethought.

This is based on time series data from the period 2010-2024. On an international level, the trends are similar. However, in Romania and the other V4 countries (Czechia, Slovakia, Poland) the rates of growth vary greatly. The growth of labor productivity was under 10% for the EU27 average, the countries in the region however achieved twice as high an increase. Romania and Poland especially stand out with 55% and 41% labor productivity increases, respectively.

In recent years, economic policy has heavily favored large-scale stimulus programs, particularly in manufacturing investments and major infrastructure or priority construction projects, Trademagazin reports. While increased funding may boost certain sectors in the short term, long-term benefits and improved labor productivity will only follow if companies are pushed toward greater efficiency, innovation, and cost awareness, the portal adds based on the analyses by GKI.

Rapeseed farming continues to decline

Agrárszektor.hu reports that in recent years, the production area of rapeseed substantially decreased. Rapeseed farming in Hungary has faced mounting pressure in recent years, driven by climate change, shrinking pesticide options, rising pest pressure, and volatile market prices, Agrárszektor reports.

While in 2018 the crop covered 330 thousand hectares, by fall 2024 only about a third of that was used for rapeseed farming. This year, between 130 and 144 thousand hectares of land have been planted with rapeseed.

This year’s spring frosts also damaged the rapeseed crops, adding to the burdens of rapeseed farmers.

Balaton taken over by algae

The largest lake in Central Europe, Lake Balaton, is worryingly taken over by algae, reported the meteorological portal Időkép.hu this week. Reports of greenish water have surfaced from both the northern and southern shores of Lake Balaton. While algal blooms aren’t new to the lake, they typically follow extended heatwaves.

According to Dr. Gábor Vasas, acting director of the HUN-REN Balaton Limnological Research Institute, chlorophyll-a levels—used to measure algal biomass—are currently at 8–10 µg/l, well below the World Health Organization’s 75 µg/l threshold. Water samples are regularly monitored by the Tihany-based institute.

The phenomenon was caused by the sudden heatwave in the early summer following a cool spring, leading to the blooming of cyanobacterium (Dolichospermum spiroides) in Lake Balaton’s warming waters. Experts advise swimmers to shower after bathing in areas where green algae are visible.

The algal bloom is not the first sign that the changed climate is affecting Lake Balaton. Last week we reported on the dangers of ecological collapse in the lake due to global warming.