Farmers consider abandoning drought-hit region in central Hungary

By Anita Komuves and Krisztina Fenyo

LADANYBENE, Hungary (Reuters) -Farmers in southern Hungary's key agricultural area are grappling with increasingly severe drought as climate change cuts crop yields and reduces groundwater levels, with some considering relocating or alternative employment.

The vast flatland, situated between the Tisza and the Danube rivers, produces corn, grain, and sunflower seed, but scientists warn that rising temperatures and insufficient rainfall are threatening its agricultural viability.

The Hungarian meteorological service said on Thursday that soil in central Hungary remains "critically dry" despite recent rains, with summer crops severely affected.

Krisztian Kisjuhasz, a beekeeper in Ladanybene would normally move his bees home to his farm at the end of the honey-producing season in July, and start preparing them for the winter.

This year, however, he packed up his bees in the middle of the night, wearing a headlamp with red light to move them to a flood zone of the Tisza river, more than 80 kilometers from his home to ensure they have access to pollen.

"Last year 30% of our bees died mainly because there was not enough pollen due to the drought ... they were not strong enough for the winter," he said, adding that the costs of commuting to tend to his bees will force him to raise honey prices.

Kisjuhasz, whose farm has been in his family for five generations, is now contemplating selling it and moving to a less dry area.

"There is no future for beekeeping in the Homokhátság," he said.

In May, the government launched a project worth about 5 billion forints ($14.29 million) to clean canals and focus on water retention to combat drought.

However, the government cannot completely protect the country from the drought, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in an interview with website baon.hu last month.

"We are doing everything we can, but even these efforts will only be sufficient to alleviate the damage caused by drought," he said.

In 2022, a droughtcaused 1000 billion forints ($2.86 billion) of losses for the agricultural sector and contributed to a rise in Hungarian inflation to two-decade highs.

Csaba Toldi, a farmer in Jaszszentlaszlo, said his grasslands produced a loss this year for the first time due to the drought and he is seeking alternative work.

Water needs to be returned to the Homokhatsag region, either through channels or water retention, Toldi says, otherwise "this area will completely dry out."

($1 = 350.0000 forints)

(Reporting by Anita KomuvesEditing by Alexandra Hudson)