Variety of craft and wine traditions

The Zemplín region was characterized by a high proportion of meadows and pastures and was an important agricultural area. Mainly buckwheat, oats and potatoes were grown in the northern areas. In the south, corn, tobacco and sugar beets were also grown. The industrial plants were mainly hemp. In the East Slovak Lowland, agriculture appeared on a larger scale only at the beginning of the 19th century, when melioration works began in this area, which changed the structure of water management in the area. It was then that the cultivation of cereals gained importance there. Earlier, this land was abandoned due to the marshes and swamps there. The local population living in these areas consumed an aquatic plant found in the wetlands, the name of which is the water nut - it was used to make flour and then bake bread. In this area, thanks to the large number of meadows and pastures, also cattle and horse breeding were developed.

In the region of Zemplin, the strong development of cities and trade was hindered by the ruling feudal families in the area. It should also be noted that craft production was much less widespread there than in the western regions. The towns of Humenné, Stropkov and Michalovce were among the most developed craft centers of Zemplín. The most widespread crafts were tailoring, pottery, as well as weaving and tanning. Shoemakers' and cooperage's guilds were also popular. The inhabitants of the region also dealt with logging, transport, fishing, beekeeping and the burning of lime used to whitewash huts. At the end of the 19th century, as many as 99% of the inhabitants of the village of Zemplínske Hámre, who moved there from the Gelnic and Margecian areas, were involved in the burning of charcoal. The inhabitants of the neighboring villages learned from them this difficult and demanding profession. Fishing was most widespread on the Latorica River. The people living in the river valleys obtained additional income from obtaining ice from the rivers, which they later sold to Jewish traders (it was used by them to store products in the so-called cold cellars). Many inhabitants of the northeastern part of the region (including Trebišov and Michalovce) were professionally engaged in weaving, which was characterized by a wealth of patterns. The craftsmen from Zemplin also specialized in wicker production. The Roma people were good at weaving wicker baskets, while the Hungarian community specialized in creating wicker furniture.

In the 19th century, Central Zemplín was one of the most industrially developed areas, but few people found employment there. The largest plants were: a mill on a multi-hectare farm in Michalovce, a sugar factory in Trebišov, distilleries in Pozdišovce, Hatalov and Humenné, a match production plant in Varichovce and a refinery in Michaľany, built after commissioning the railway line from Slovenské Nové Mesto to Humené Mesto in 1874. - Poland and Michaľany - Koszyce in 1873. After the Second World War, the industry focused on the processing of agricultural products: in dairies, mills, bakeries, vineyards and the meat industry. Pozdišovce was and still is an important center of ceramics production, where they have been selling their products to European markets since the 15th century. The potters' guild was established there in the middle of the 18th century and it has been developing to this day. In 1950, 51 people registered as potters. The Parikrup family, whose pottery tradition has lasted for 300 years, lives in this village. On the other hand, in the village of Čertižnie, women specialized in batik Easter eggs made with a pin or a piece of wood. This technique was also common in the area of Medzilaborce. Also noteworthy are fabrics from the vicinity of Trebiszów and embroideries of the inhabitants of Ruthenian villages, in which plant ornaments predominate. Until the mid-20th century, sculptors made beautifully carved window frames in Remetské Hámry. At the end of the 19th century, a craft developed to create pots carved in wood, which were brought to Zemplín by Romanian-speaking Roma (Bajáši) who came from Transcarpathia Ukraine. Their settlements in Budkovce and Pavlovce became centers of this craft. It was from them that the production of vessels hollowed in wood spread to other areas of eastern Slovakia (including Podhorod, Sediska-Podčičvie, Tušice, Myslin, Papina, Udavských and the vicinity of Veľké Kapušany).

The area on the southwestern slope of the Zemplinski Mountains (called Tokaj) is known for the production of high-quality wine. In Slovakia, it includes the municipalities of Tŕňa, Čerhov, Černochov, Bara, Viničky and Slovenské Nové Mesto. Tokaj wine was already cultivated in the 13th century. Some wine cellars are carved out of volcanic rocks to a depth of 16 meters, and in the village of Tŕňa, which is the center of the Tokaj wine region in Slovakia, there are up to 20 km of underground corridors.