Agriculture

Agriculture in Hajdú-Bihar county

Hajdú-Bihar County, with its 6.210,88 km² area, is one of the major counties of Hungary, occupying 6.7% of the country’s territory. In the county, the growing area is 525,2 thousand hectares, is the most important natural resource of the county. Cereal and industrial crop production play a decisive role in the county’s agricultural production. Among cereals, maize, green peas and sweet corn has the largest sowing area.

GROWING PLANTS:

The sowing structure of the county was heavily influenced by extreme and unusual weather conditions in 2018; for example the elongated winter weather, the high rainfall in spring and the resulting inland situation, plus the sudden warming of May.

Among cereals, sowing area of wheat has increased over recent years, with maize and sunflower decreasing. The area of rapeseed after the fall in the decade in 2018 exceeded the national level by 61% compared with years of 2012-2016. Other cereals, like rye, barley, triticale, oats, the drought in May restrained the growth. Sugar beet cultures have a medium-good harvest. The quality was typically good and the sugar concentration was high. Potato growers achieved significantly less harvests than last year.

In the area of vegetable cultivation, sweet corn and green peas have always played a decisive role in the county. Both plants have a high profitability rating, but their cultivation costs are higher as well, than the standard plants. Sweet corn is the highest quantity produced industrial crop in Hungary, with its 13.000 hectares of cultivated area of ​​Hajdú-Bihar. 95% of sweet corn products are exported.

In the county there are several fruit and vegetable crop landscapes, like the bordering region with Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county. Apple, cherry and plum are the leading fruits of the county. In the last years, significant plum and nut orchards have been created. Pear, hazelnut, cherry, quince and buckthorn orchards show a slight increase. The area for peach and strawberry has decreased. The new goals of plantations include the partial replacement of old plantations and creating new plantations with blackberries, buckthorn, and blackberries without thorns.

There is a permanent grassland area of ​​110.657 hectares in the supported area of ​​114.093 hectares of the county, and there is 3.436 hectares of temporary grassland area.

97% of the grasslands are grazed by livestock farmers and the remaining 3% is mowed.

LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION:

 The weight of the county is outstanding both in the production of livestock and in the production of agricultural products related to livestock industry. A significant proportion of the country’s livestock is held by farmers in our county (for example, between 12-23% of the national animal population, 23% of sheep).

Between 2010-2018, the following trends are observed in livestock:

The total number of cattle shows a steady growth in Hungary, there is a 25% increase since 2010. The stock of cattle is 880.000 in 2018, that is 16.000 more than last year. In many cases, the dairy sector generated losses due to low buy-up prices. Because of the low buy-up prices, only the large-scale, automated feed-in farms can generate income.

The total number of pigs was 2.9 million in 2018, 1.9% higher than last year. The stock of mothers grew by 4.1% in one year and the amount is 179,000.

The number of sheep has fluctuated in recent years, it has risen in 2017, then declined again in 2018. This species has the highest proportion in our country, with almost one fifth of the national population. There is no tradition of lamb consumption in Hungary. The vast majority of lambs are exported, mostly to the Italian market. Wool processing has ceased in Hungary for years, thus the total quantity is exported.

The country’s hen stock was 34.7 million in June 2018, 9.2% more compared to 2017.

The 11 million egg-laying stock became 5.2% less. In the county, the increase in hen stock has reached 22 % in 2018.

Fish farming in Hortobágy covers about 20% of domestic fish production.

The situation of forest and wildlife management shows a more favorable picture due to the fact that the area of forests has doubled in the county in the last decade.

The most important player in forest management in the county is the Nyírerdő Zrt., which manages a significant part of the state forests of Nyírség, and operates four forestries in Hajdú-Bihar.

The Gúthi Forest (7,818 ha) is decorated with a 5,175 hectare Gúthi forest block, which includes the largest, closed-flowered oak tree of the Alföld and one of the most beautiful acorns of Nyírség. In addition to the forestries in Debrecen (8,600 ha) and Haláp (7,100 ha), it is necessary to mention the forestry in Hajdúhadház, which covers 5,200 hectares of land outside of Nyírség. In terms of hunting, the area’s most famous hunting area is the Gúthi Forest, which lies between Nyíradony and Nyíracsád.

Gúth is not only renowned for the two Fallow deer world records, but also for being the only hunting ground in the world that has won the CIC, the Edmond Blanc Award of the International Wildlife Refuge Organization twice.

In Hortobágy, the richness of the small wild animals attracts hunters from around the world.

Hajdú-Bihar county has an outstanding potencial for irrigation, 2/3 of its area is a potencial area for irrigation development. Nearly half of all the Hungarian water management investments and developments for irrigation will be affected in the county and will be implemented between 2020 and 2030 according to preliminary plans.

Irrigation development

The Hajdú-Bihar County Self-Government gives priority to the continuous monitoring of the county’s agricultural situation. Based on the summary of the Hajdú-Bihar county aspects of the National Irrigation Development Strategy prepared by the Hajdú-Bihar County Organization of the National Chamber of Agriculture (hereinafter: NAK), the following can be said about the county’s irrigation development:

The document entitled “Hajdú-Bihar county’s Aspects of Irrigation Development Strategy” describes the current situation of water management and irrigation and the obstacles to its development.

The document emphasizes the need for irrigation development in agricultural areas and details the specific measures and developments related to water management. The development of agricultural infrastructure is difficult because of the outdated condition of water facilities, the excessive administration and cost of obtaining permits for irrigation and the fragmented land structure. The long-term goal is the coordinated development of agricultural production and water management, on a way where they do not endanger each other.

Ensuring water supply for agricultural land is a priority in several respects. Taking into account the trend of recent years, two major problems can be mentioned that need to be addressed in the field of irrigation development in a well-considered environmentally friendly way.

One of the factor was come to light by the overview of the National Meteorological Service’s data (OMSZ). According to this, there has been a 10 percent drop in rain quantity in the country over the last 110 years, a process that is taking place in parallel with the rise in average temperatures.

This process means an increased lenght of droughts over time. Another major problem is the extreme temporal and spatial distribution of water resources, which further increases the risk of inland water and drought in Hungary. As a result of this process, there may be inland water damage and drought in a given area, even in a given year, which can severely harm farmers engaged in agricultural activities.

Nationally, even in the driest years, only 2 percent of agricultural land is irrigated. In the case of Hajdú-Bihar county, the irrigation capabilities are outstanding nationally due to the availability of the existing water management systems and the excellent soil conditions.

In Hajdú-Bihar county there are 740 farmers with water rights, which means 25,000 hectares of irrigated area. According to the tendency of the last years, farmers used irrigation in 40-50% of the irrigable area. In the county, mainly linear and center irrigation systems are used along with hose reel irrigation.

In addition to favorable geographical conditions (due to among other things, the existence of the Eastern Main Canal and favorable terrain), there are also factors that hinder the development of irrigation.

In summary, in Hajdú-Bihar county the natural opportunities are greatly available to increase the irrigability of agricultural land, but efforts must be made to develop a well-considered strategy that is acceptable and applicable to all actors.

Cultivated crops and sowing areas in 2018 (hectars)