Hungarian farmers will soon be sowing such sunflowers; is this the future?

The latest Hungarian report of the Institute of Agricultural Economics reveals that at the 96.9% harvest level of sunflowers, this year's national average yield has decreased compared to the previous year's level, to 2.5 t/ha, but looking at the average yield for the 10 years between 2014 and 2023, it can be clearly seen that the sunflower yield was around 2.74 t/ha in Hungary, apart from the extreme drought year of 2022. In order to increase crop yields through innovations, sunflower breeders are working on the production of hybrids that ensure stable crop yields even in drought years. The breeding of hybrids with yield stability and predictable performance requires the continuous renewal of downy mildew resistance, which tends to develop in wetter years, as well as the breeding of ...