April 11, 2015
The Hungarian organiser of the National Committee of IYFF + 10, Kislépték held its annual general assembly on 11 April 2015. During the meeting our members, small scale farmers and artisan food producers, local rural development civil associations as well as the Hungarian National Committee members and interested partners discussed the achievements of 2014, especially regarding to the actions, programmes of the International Year of Family Farming and worked out and approved a working plan for 2015 and beyond.
PLANS OF 2015 AND BEYOND
In 2015 and thereafter we are planning a continuous work to develop the small scale, local initiations which influences legal framework for family farming, for small scale farmers in Hungary including legal reforms, proposing new laws (if necessary) and advise to increase state budget support in several sectors affecting family farming.
We are accommodating an ongoing discussion between stakeholders, specially between our members within Kislépték and also together with all those joined our IYFF +10 National Committee in order to work out strategies, panel discussions, tools and measures for executions.
Our focus area in 2015 in Hungary:
•creating legal framework for joint sale points with such taxation rules where the cooperation would not affect the taxation status of the farmers in cooperation;
•submitting the Good Hygiene Practice for agro-tourism to the Hygiene Committee of the Agricultural Ministry
•expanding the small farmers taxation for the diversified activities (such as grape harvesting festivals, transferring household farming knowledge);
•proposal to amend law as small scale farmers should go to festivals outside the 40 km limit;
•proposing definition for family farming and to create a beneficial and supportive legal, taxation and financial environment.
We continue working on matters already initiated in the past years, for example in matters we submitted proposals submitted to various Ministry and state agencies:
osupporting and participating in the preparation of the Hand Book of Short Food Supply Chain as new form of EU support in order to assist producers and consumers to join to this form of trading;
oproposal submitted and now waiting for approving Small Scale Farmers’ Good Hygiene Practice by Ministry;ocreating the small scale farmers rule for wine making (including fruit wine).
osubmitting the legal framework for the social farms;
ocommenting the material on Supporting the investments specially in win and sun renewable energy of the small enterprises in the Rural Development Programme by February 28, 2015;
olobbying against TTIP (https://kisleptek.hu/stop_ttip_en/);
opropose amendment to waste management rules for artisan soap making;
oparticipate in EIP focus groups on tradition based innovation.
2015 is the Year of Local product in Hungary
We plan to organise joint lectures together with Agricultural Ministry and the Hungarian Chamber of Agriculture.We initiated organising workshops together with National Agricultural Advisor, Training and Rural Development Institut.We are expecting to publish handbooks in several topics.
LONG-TERM PLANS
•to achieve a lighter taxation and hygiene rules and system for marginal production principle for joint processors;
•to determine lighter taxation rules for hobby activities (including artisan goods and household farming);
•amending rules for public catering as to legalise milk and fat sale and limiting the amount of sweeteners.
INTERNATIONAL GOALS:
•determining the artisan production in the herb regulation on European Union level;
•influence determining local product definition which accommodate the rationality in the New Members States;
•lobby for differentiation of ruling the home made, artisan and traditional products compared to the agro-food business law in order to make lighter regulations.
