The past, present and expected future of paprika were discussed at the Agrár Hungarikum round table discussion in Kalocsá, XXXI. At a professional forum organized as part of the Paprika and Gastro Festival , the Ministry of Agriculture informed MTI.
The event was attended by Zsolt Feldman, the Ministry's Secretary of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, who informed the interested local and surrounding farmers that several special subsidies for the production of hot peppers have been launched in recent years.
As an example, he mentioned the support for alleviating the seed and drying costs associated with hot peppers, as well as the fact that, since 2015, hot pepper growers can also participate in the support linked to production. The possibilities of the development tenders announced for the horticultural sectors - in which about HUF 150 billion in support decisions were made in the past year and a half - are considered to be of greater importance, since the technological renewal of production can be realized through them. At the same time, the state secretary considered it most important that players in the paprika sector can meet the changed sales opportunities and customer habits.
Those present agreed that breed breeding, research, and technology change are needed to achieve higher yields and economic production. In addition, the paprika industry has to deal with labor shortages and imports from time to time.
The basis of competitiveness in this sector is technological change, technological renewal, which, according to Csaba Gyuricza, rector of the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, will be solved by generational change. The supply is assured, the university graduates two thousand graduates with marketable knowledge every year, the announcement reads.
Source and image: Magyar Hírlap
