Deep Dive
Stench complaints and the broken facility
Residents of Hódmezővásárhely have endured years of overpowering odors from the ATE protein processing plant located four kilometers from downtown. Our agronomist source, who previously worked at the facility's biocompost division, explains the core problem: the composting system hasn't functioned properly for years. Industrial composting requires precise conditions—specific ratios of wet slaughterhouse waste to dry materials like chicken meal, constant aeration, temperature control, and protective covering. Instead, workers found the facility lacks semi-permeable tarps that expired in 2016, the ventilation system is completely non-functional, and electrical wiring has been dangerously jury-rigged. A 2024 inspection report by the system's original installers documented all of this, noting the electrical hazards alone make the building unsafe. Without proper aeration, the process becomes anaerobic—meaning rotting instead of controlled decomposition.
Tracing the product to farmers' fields
Partizan followed a truck delivering the biocompost from the facility to a local agricultural field. Farmers purchase this product specifically to replenish soil nutrients. Our source compared the material directly to properly composted manure: the ATE product was dark, foul-smelling, visibly wet and clumpy, while legitimate compost is granular, odor-neutral, and crumbly. The difference was stark. The company's product license and distribution permit explicitly describe the material as dark brown with a characteristic smell—but the actual output violates those specifications entirely. Most troubling, the source revealed the material still bears the old company name from before the 2023 rebranding, suggesting it never actually completed the composting process before being released into circulation.
Lab tests confirm non-compost status
Researchers at Budapest's Gödöllő University soil science department ran standard germination tests. They used cress seeds, an extremely sensitive indicator of contamination—if conditions are abnormal, cress won't germinate. In pure compost, germination is rare anyway, but the researchers also tested a 50/50 mixture of the ATE material mixed with potting soil. After two weeks, nothing sprouted. Real compost produces neutral to slightly alkaline pH; this material tested acidic. Salt content was dangerously high—phytotoxic to seedlings and young roots. The department head, Miklós Gulyás, explained that the sample arrived with high moisture content and obvious signs it was mid-process, not a finished product. He emphasized that proper composting stabilizes toxins through controlled decomposition, converting them into safer organic forms. Without that process, hazardous materials remain concentrated and mobile in soil.
The foundation, dividends, and deferred repairs
The Jövő Nemzedék foundation, associated with politician László Lázár, acquired both ATE and its biocompost subsidiary for free in 2024. Within three years, the foundation extracted 7 billion forints in dividends—while the facility deteriorated. An anti-corruption commentator notes this represents the core mechanism of state privatization through foundations: public assets transfer to entities that circumvent normal procurement rules and allow public money to flow into private hands without oversight. The ministry overseeing these assets confirms they're now auditing the company. When pressed on why six years passed between the 2024 inspection noting expired tarps and actual repairs, the current CEO deflected, claiming warranty periods don't reflect real lifespan. However, staff and documents reveal the foundation prioritized extracting cash over maintaining critical infrastructure.
The agriculture expert's assessment
Our source, an agronomist with direct facility experience, frames the stakes clearly: Hungarian soils are already acidic and depleted of organic matter after decades of synthetic fertilizer use. Climate change and intensive tilling are accelerating desertification. Real compost—properly produced—could generate 400,000 forints per ton and actually improve soil health long-term. Instead, farmers receive material that's essentially hazardous waste dressed as product. He argues that while waste processing facilities will never be entirely odor-free, proper expertise and equipment can minimize impact to manageable levels. The real tragedy is that biosolids and meat processing byproducts are genuinely valuable agricultural inputs if treated correctly. Sending untreated decomposing sludge to fields doesn't dispose of the waste—it just relocates the contamination. Hungary's regulations use testing methods from the 1960s-70s, many not designed for compost, which leaves loopholes for companies like this one.