Sustainability and Innovation in Agriculture
Are you a smallholder? Or have you started farming recently? Now you can participate with a 50% discount in the outstanding spring agricultural event of the year, AgroFuture 2024, in Kecskemét on the 23rd of May, where agricultural sustainability and innovation will be the main topics.
Please, fill out the following form, and Portfolio’s professional team will assess your claim so that you can redeem your discounted ticket.
If you have filled out the form, save it and send it to kistermeloikedvezmeny@portfolio.hu.
The subject of the letter: Portfolio AgroFuture 2024 - smallholder application.
You can access the form by clicking here.
This year's series of farmers' protests in Europe has shown that there is a lot of tension behind the EU's "green ambitions" for agriculture. The session will discuss the direction the European Green Deal could take in the coming years and how sustainability requirements for agriculture could change. The roundtable discussion will also cover how the conditions of the Agro-ecological Programme (AEP), which is part of the first pillar of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), have changed, the practical solutions farmers can use to comply with the requirements, and what further AEP changes are expected in the near future. In addition, this year's support for Agri-Environment Schemes (AES) and the ecological programme financed from the second pillar rural development funds will be discussed, as well as how green rural development tenders may evolve from 2025.
- How might the European Green Deal's agricultural targets change as a result of this year's farmers' protests?
- What are the biggest environmental and sustainability challenges affecting agricultural production today?
- Could sustainability requirements for agriculture be tightened or relaxed in the EU Common Agricultural Policy?
- How have the conditions of the Agro-ecological Programme changed, and what practical solutions are available to farmers?
- What Agri-Environment Scheme and eco payments can farmers expect to receive this year?
- How might the eligibility criteria for AES and eco support change from 2025?
08:30 - 08:35
08:35 - 08:50
Green requirements in EU agricultural legislation – What direction can the Common Agricultural Policy take?
Speaker: Zsolt Feldman, State Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture
08:50 - 09:05
Local solutions to global sustainability and environmental problems
Speaker: Zoltán Demeter, Head of Agribusiness Development Department, K&H
09:05 - 09:20
Greening agriculture – Integration possibilities of energy efficiency and renewable energy in agriculture
Speaker: Róbert Fehér, CEO, 8G Energy
09:20 - 10:10
Roundtable discussion: A wave of farmer protests in Europe: What will be the fate of the Green Deal? – Key changes to the Agro-ecological Programme, agri-environment and eco-agriculture tenders in 2024 and from 2025
Moderator: László Hazafi, agriculture journalist, Portfolio/Agrárszektor
Conversation participants:
It is becoming increasingly important for farmers in Hungary to cultivate their agricultural lands in a sustainable way. The focus will be on no-till farming, soil conservation methods, and modern options for sustainable soil improvement. The experts in the session will analyse the sustainable farming options that farmers can choose from, what to consider when applying them, and the benefits and costs for each crop. The session will also focus on the robotisation opportunities that farmers can exploit today and in the near future and on the robotisation development trends in agriculture. In addition, experts will review the most effective precision farming and digitalisation solutions that contribute to sustainable production in domestic agriculture.
- What are the most important criteria for sustainable soil management?
- What are the benefits of no-till farming and soil conservation methods for producers, and what costs should they anticipate?
- What sustainable tillage solutions should be chosen for each crop? What are the most effective tools for sustainable soil improvement?
- What robotisation trends are prevailing in agriculture?
- What are the best robotisation developments that domestic producers should adopt in the near future?
- In which agricultural sectors and activities are robotisation solutions most relevant?
- What are the latest developments in precision and digitalisation that most effectively serve sustainability?
10:30 - 10:40
Soil biology for our benefit: The invisible resource
Speaker: István Parádi, Assistant Professor, Eötvös Loránd University, Executive of ExperiPlant Ltd.
10:40 - 10:50
The role of organic yield enhancers and soil improvers in no-till sustainable agriculture
Speaker: György Fekete, Head of Research Centre, MATE Körforgásos Gazdaság Elemző Központ
10:50 - 11:30
Roundtable discussion: Hungarian perspectives of sustainable soil management – No-till farming, soil conservation farming, sustainable soil improvement
Moderator: Viktor Balázs, Field Expert, Hungarian Chamber of Agriculture
Conversation participants:
11:30 - 11:45
The role of innovation in EU direct agricultural support
Speaker: Dániel Bene, Advisory, Magyar Fejlesztésösztönző Iroda
11:45 - 12:30
Roundtable discussion: Newest trends in mechanisation innovations – The potential of robotics in agriculture, precision and digitalisation developments for sustainability
Moderator: Péter Miklós Varga, Permanent Expert, Cibus Hungaricus Foundation
Conversation participants:
The livestock sector is under constant – often unfounded – attack for contributing to the adverse effects causing climate change. The session will examine the requirements for modern livestock production in the present time and explore the new technologies and production practices livestock farmers can adopt to ensure that their activities are not only economical but sustainable. The roundtable discussion will also address the opportunities and benefits of sustainable feed production and feeding in the domestic feed and livestock industry.
- How can the animal husbandry sector defend itself against accusations of contributing to climate change?
- What are the basic requirements for sustainable animal husbandry today?
- What new technologies and production practices can livestock farmers use in the context of sustainability?
- How can farmers comply with tightening animal welfare standards?
- How to reconcile sustainability and cost-effectiveness in animal production?
- What are the opportunities for sustainable feed production and feeding in Hungary today?
- How can sustainable feeding benefit livestock farms?
13:30 - 13:45
Tackling antimicrobial resistance – Support and funding opportunities
Speaker: Imre Nemes, President, Nemzeti Élelmiszerlánc-biztonsági Hivatal
13:45 - 14:35
Roundtable discussion: Modern technologies and production practices in animal husbandry – Possibilities and benefits of sustainable feeding
Conversation participants:
Sustainability requirements for agriculture increasingly demand that farmers use environmentally friendly products and technologies in their input management. The session will showcase the new opportunities that modern fertiliser, pesticide, and seed use can offer farmers to help them operate in a more sustainable way. In addition, experts will analyse the requirements for modern arable crop production and the potential for domestic production of alternative crops.
- What are the most important criteria for sustainable input management?
- What new pesticides and technologies can you use to replace conventional products in each crop?
- How can you make fertiliser use more efficient, and what new products and solutions are available to farmers?
- How can you integrate sustainability into seed use?
- How can the environmental requirements of modern arable crop production be met economically? What alternative crops can be considered for arable crop production?
14:55 - 15:10
Plant protection responses – How can we reduce environmental impact while maintaining efficiency?
Speaker: Sándor Fehérvári, Agronomy & Technology Head Europe, Syngenta
15:10 - 16:00
Roundtable discussion: Criteria for modern crop production and input management – Alternative crops, sustainable use of seeds, pesticides, and fertilisers, environmentally friendly products and technologies
Conversation participants:
The adverse effects of climate change are also increasing the importance of irrigation in Hungary, and it is becoming the basis for sustainable production in many farms. According to official statements, now the goal is to reach nearly 350,000 hectares of irrigated land by 2030. The session will explore which regions and agricultural areas could benefit from irrigation in the near future and what administrative and financial public support farmers can receive. The new rural development funding opportunities for irrigation development opening this year will also be discussed, as well as the efficient irrigation solutions that farmers should choose for each crop.
- How does climate change affect agricultural production in Hungary?
- Who can access irrigation in the coming period?
- What factors determine the cost of irrigation investments?
- What administrative and budgetary support is available to farmers to improve irrigation?
- What new rural development tender opportunities are open for irrigation development this year?
- What are the most efficient irrigation solutions today, and which technologies should farmers use for each crop?
16:00 - 16:15
Mezőhegyes irrigation improvement pilot project: results so far and future plans
Speaker: Norbert Kovács, CEO, Nemzeti Ménesbirtok és Tangazdaság
16:15 - 17:00
Roundtable discussion: Fighting climate change through irrigation development: Subsidies and facilitations for irrigation investments – New tender opportunities and legislative changes in 2024
Conversation participants:
Be our guest for a glass of champagne after the technical programme, and don't miss the networking opportunity with conference participants and speakers!
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