Hungarian farmers dumped piles of manure in front of the European Union’s headquarters in central Budapest in protest at the European Commission’s plans to overhaul the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) from 2028, leading to cuts in agricultural subsidies.

The protest, backed by 70 farming organisations, coincided with similar demonstrations in Brussels. According to the main organisers, the Hungarian Chamber of Agriculture (NAK) and the Hungarian Farmers' Association (Magosz), both loyal to the ruling Fidesz party, the draft budget proposal for the next MMF would boost spending on defence, innovation and industrial competitiveness, while streamlining funding for agricultural and regional development.

They claimed the EC would cut CAP funding in the period after 2027, which at present accounts for a third of the EU’s seven-year budget, totalling €400bn.

Hungary has been a major recipient of the scheme since the country’s accession to the EU in 2004. Farmers receive €2bn annually from land-based subsidies under Pillar I of CAP and from funds from Pillar II, which supports investment in rural development programmes.

The proposed changes in the EU's next long-term budget (2028-2034) and the shifting priorities within the CAP would have significant implications for Hungarian farmers, leading to cuts in both pillars.

According to the draft proposal, subsidies would increasingly be tied to actual agricultural production rather than land ownership. This would favour small and medium-sized farmers and hurt large landowners, many of whom are aligned with the government. A handful of oligarchs and Fidesz cronies own more land than historical aristocrats ever did, some observed.

The overhaul CAP is a politically delicate matter for the Fidesz government, as its core voter base is largely concentrated in Hungary’s small towns and rural areas. Many of these communities rely heavily on agriculture and EU subsidies for their livelihoods.

Hence it is no wonder that Prime Minister Orban expressed solidarity with the protest. He shared photos of the demonstration on social media, saying: "I stand with the farmers". The caption continued: "I propose the most radical form of resistance. Rebellion begins!"

The veteran Hungarian leader has frequently aligned with the farmers' cause. Last year, before an EU summit, he called for a change of leadership in Brussels during a protest in the Belgian capital.

The debate on the EU’s next budget is tightly linked to Ukraine’s future EU membership, as the government has ramped up its anti-Ukrainian rhetoric as a last resort to stop the churn down of its core base.

Facing growing dissatisfaction in its traditional strongholds, the cabinet has framed Ukraine’s EU membership as an existential threat to Hungary’s economy, particularly in the agricultural sector. Officials argue that an enlarged EU would divert funding away from Hungarian farmers and flood the market with cheap Ukrainian grain, poultry, and other products.

This narrative is expected to play a central role in the 2026 election campaign, as Fidesz positions itself as the sole defender of national interests against both Brussels and Kyiv. By casting Ukraine’s fast-tracked integration as a direct attack on Hungarian livelihoods, the government hopes to rally its rural base and distract from deeper structural problems in domestic agriculture.