“28 Heves County enterprises have made commitments within the framework of the competitiveness-increasing funding program, and will be realising 13.5 billion forints (EUR 38.2 million) in investment, towards which they are receiving 6.4 billion forints (EUR 18.1 million) in state funding”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said on Friday at the contract presentation ceremony of Magyar Gomba Ltd. in Demjén.

Mr. Szijjártó said that 4000 workplaces will be saved in Heves County thanks to these investment projects. In Demjén, the Egri Korona Borház (Eger Crown Wine House), which is one of the bastions of the Eger wine district and wine culture, also announced its investment project, which isn’t linked to the company’s classical activity, but to mushroom growing. “This is an investment that will enable the company to stand on several pillars, and thanks to which it will not only survive the crisis, but will be able to begin the new global economic competition that will commence following the crisis from a position that is more favourable than the position it was in prior to the crisis”, he stated.

“The volume of the investment is 564 million forints (EUR 1.6 million), with which Egri Korona Borház will be creating an opportunity for itself to ensure the stable availability of raw materials for mushroom growing. The company will be establishing a warehouse, purchasing equipment and placing into commission technology that will significantly increase its mushroom-growing capacities. The mushrooms exported by the Eger winery currently make up half of the company’s production, and the increase in capacity will enable Hungarian mushrooms to appear on even more export markets”, he added.

“Hungary has won the first phase of its protection against the global pandemic, and the first phase fundamental concentrated on healthcare issues, but the time has now come for economic protection”, he highlighted. “The goal is to protect all the jobs that have become endangered, and to replace all the jobs that have been lost”, he added.

According to the Minister, the performance of the recent period gives us the right “to have enough self-confidence to set ourselves the goal, without any exaggeration, of creating more workplaces than are lost because of the crisis”. Mr. Szijjártó reminded the press that within the framework of the competitiveness-increasing funding program a total of 816 Hungarian enterprises have undertaken to realise 377 billion forints (EUR 1.07 billion) in investment, towards which the government is providing 169 billion forints (EUR 477.7 million) in funding, as a result of which it is protecting 143,618 workplaces.

Managing Director of Magyar Gomba Kertész Ltd. (Hungarian Mushroom Horticulture Ltd.) József Rácz spoke about the fact that the company has not made any of its employees redundant even during the period of emergency, and will be realising a significant increase in capacity thanks to the 564-million-forint investment, and there is a good chance that it will succeed in becoming a supplier to the largest German supermarket chains.

According to publicly available company data, the company achieved 5.1 billion forints (EUR 14.42 million) in turnover in 2018, following 4.9 billion forints (EUR 13.85 million) in the previous year. The company posted 164 million forints (EUR 463 thousand) in after-tax profits the year before last, and over 232 million forints (EUR 655 thousand) in 2017. It employed 73 people in 2017, with the number of staff increasing to 95 in 2018.

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade / MTI)