Hungary's print newspapers hit by new waste‑management fee, sparking cost crisis

From 1 January 2024 Hungary's waste‑management firm MOHU began charging newspaper publishers 143 forints per kilogram for the collection of undelivered copies. Previously paper mills removed the waste and even paid for it, but the new system passes the transport cost directly to the publishers.

Publishers report bills of several hundred thousand forints per month; a daily newspaper can face an extra 2‑3 million forints, while larger titles risk over 10 million. The added expense comes as the print market contracts, with declining circulation and advertising revenue, prompting fears that publishers will cut print runs, further limiting newspaper availability in smaller towns.

Industry bodies have urged the government to remove undelivered newspaper waste from the concession‑based waste system, citing a previous exemption that freed print media from an extended producer responsibility fee. Concurrently, ALDI Hungary announced it will cease selling printed newspapers in its stores, a move the Hungarian Newspaper Publishers Association says threatens both revenues and press‑freedom diversity.