Agriculture minister: diversity and forests must be preserved

Farmland, water, ecological diversity and forests must be preserved for future generations by the state and all concerned, the agriculture minister said on Thursday.

Attending a roundtable discussion at the Planet Budapest 2023 Sustainability Expo and Experience Programmes, alongside former president Janos Ader, chairman of the board of the Blue Planet Foundation, which organised the event, István Nagy said farmland was a complex ecosystem, and the animals, fungi and bacteria found in it were needed to produce an adequate amount of high-quality food.

Nagy said the number of microorganisms in the soil had slumped to 10 percent in the past 50 years. “As if losing farmland due to urbanisation and industrial development were not enough, the quality of our farmland is also deteriorating,” the minister said.

That is why the soil monitoring system which provides a comprehensive picture of the state of Hungary’s soil, is important, he said.

Due to drastic climate change, it will not be possible to leave agricultural land bare in the coming years, Nagy said, adding that the soil would have to be covered.

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