Steven N.Agricultural Minister István Nagy announced the formation of an emergency task force on Thursday to deal with Hungary’s worsening drought. Nagy said that nearly half of Europe suffers from a lack of precipitation, and Hungary is facing an historic drought.
By now, the vast majority of the country has experienced a severe or major drought situation. Fighting this and guaranteeing a safe supply of food are priorities for the Ministry of Agriculture, confirmed István Nagy.
The drought is causing serious problems in the agricultural sector, with a 25% loss of wheat crops and the loss of the corn harvest in large parts of the Great Plain and Central Hungary. The continued lack of water is threatening crops in the Transdanubian region as well, said the Minister.
Grass in the Great Plains region have completely dried out, with farmers unable to have their livestock graze. The Ministry of Agriculture estimates that there could be as many as one million hectares of arable land affected by the drought.
The minister stated that the task force would immediately start working on overcoming the challenges confronting farmers and Hungarian agriculture. [Magyar Hang]
