AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY IN HUNGARY

In Hungary, agriculture was a strategic sector of paramount importance under socialism, but its importance declined steadily after the fall of communism. The EU accession has brought mixed results. The role of Hungarian agriculture is above the EU average, both in terms of employment and share of GDP. The output of Hungary's agriculture accounts for 2% of the EU's agricultural output. 60% of the country's 93 million hectares are used for agriculture, with a particularly high share of arable land. In recent decades, Hungary has experienced a steady and significant decline in the amount of agricultural land under cultivation, with a significant contribution from the decline in livestock numbers. The agricultural area of the country has become very fragmented in terms of farming. In the article, the efficiency of agricultural production in Hungary was assessed by looking at the productivity of the factors of production (labour and land). The analysis was based on data from Eurostat's Economic Accounts for Agriculture. Three main economic indicators were selected: output, gross value added and entrepreneurial income. The main economic indicators of agricultural production were compared per annual work unit (AWU) and per unit area (hectare). The analysis shows that labour productivity in agriculture in the European Union is significantly higher than in Hungary. The difference in efficiency between the EU and Hungary is also clearly shown in the different output per hectare of agricultural land in favour of the EU. Input efficiency affects the cost of production, its profitability and thus its competitiveness. The advantage of cheap labour in Hungarian agriculture is significantly reduced due to low labour productivity. It is no coincidence that only a few Hungarian agri-food products have been competitive on domestic and foreign markets in recent years.