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Private Sector
9) FAO launches grant competition to support rural women
November 24th, 2020, http://www.fao.org/georgia/news/detail-events/en/c/1333099/
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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has announced a grant competition for women living in the Ateni, Plevi, Tvishi and Sori communities. The competition, which is part of the Agriculture and Rural Development in Georgia project, is for the procurement of labor-saving agricultural machinery or equipment. The overall objective of the initiative is to improve the quality of life for rural women by providing them with agricultural technologies. The main target beneficiaries are single parents, women with three or more children, women with disabilities and women living with sick and/or disabled family members.
Private Sector
November 1st, 2020, https://cbw.ge/economy/expo-georgia-to-host-agro-exports-forum-in-online-b2b-format
Expo Georgia hosted an agriculture and food industry export forum in late November 2020. The main objective of the forum was to assist agricultural and food product manufacturers (especially smaller ones) in attracting sales channels and expanding on both domestic and international markets. To this end, representatives of 50 major exporters from target countries participated in the forum. Moreover, agricultural and food product manufacturers also received important information how to export products.
Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the forum was held in an online format.
11) Georgian Agro Business Association founded
November 2nd, 2020, https://cbw.ge/economy/agro-business-association-founded-in-georgia
The Georgian Agro Business Association (GABA) was founded on October 2, 2020 with the aim of uniting Georgian agricultural sector representatives. GABA hopes to attract major businesses to the agricultural sector, increase food supplies, diversify foreign markets and boost export indicators within the sector.
12) More than 2,250 tons of fish exported from Georgia this year
November 5th, 2020, http://bizzone.info/agriculture/2020/1604610109.php
Over the first nine months of this year, more than 2,250 tons of fish valued at USD 1.17 million have been exported from Georgia. The main export markets were Turkey (2,190 tons valued at USD 876,700), Azerbaijan (50.6 tons valued at USD 255,400) and Armenia (18.3 tons valued at USD 35,000). These are promising figures, especially given that the government plans to intensify the development of aquaculture in the country in the coming years.
13) Citrus harvest projected at 20,000 tons less than last year
November 10th, 2020, https://commersant.ge/en/post/georgia-will-harvest-20000-tons-less-citrus-fruits
Georgia is expected to harvest 40,000 tons of citrus fruit this year, 20,000 tons less than last year. The drastic decline in production is due to a combination of fertility issues and abnormal frosts last year. At least 50% of the harvest is expected to be exported. Given the increased demand for citrus fruits (as a source of vitamin C) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that this year will still be a successful year despite the drop in production. The main export markets for Georgian citrus last year were Russia, Ukraine and Armenia.
14) Meat and meat product prices up 3.4%
November 13th, 2020, https://bm.ge/en/article/meat-price-increased-/68663/
According to Geostat, meat and meat product prices are up 3.4% over last year. The increase is driven by a rise in the cost of animal feed as well as the exchange rate of the lari (GEL). Currently, the average cost per kilogram of meat is approximately GEL 24, with average prices slightly lower in local markets.
Meat production is increasing in general in the country. According to Geostat, 16,300 tons of meat was produced in Georgia in the second quarter of this year.
15) GABA highlights challenges for agricultural development
November 17th, 2020, https://cbw.ge/economy/gaba-radical-changes-are-required-in-agribusiness-sector
The Georgian Agro Business Association (GABA) has examined the current challenges facing the agricultural sector, noting that radical changes are needed for the sector to develop further. In particular, GABA noted the lack of knowledge-based solutions, the low concentration of land resources and the inactivity of the existing cooperatives, the low level of value addition, a deficit of qualified personnel, a shortage of seed and plant materials, a lack of modern machinery, poor irrigation, unorganized supply chains and unreasonable consumption.
16) 653 tons of tangerines exported
November 17th, 2020, https://bm.ge/en/article/where-is-georgian-citrus-sold-/68945/
So far this year, Georgia has exported 653 tons of tangerines valued at USD 295,000. This is a year-onyear increase of 138% in terms of volume as well as an increase of USD 149,000 in terms of value. The main export markets have been Armenia (411 tons) and Russia (185 tons).
17) Dairy producers call for a freeze on credit liabilities
November 19th, 2020, https://bm.ge/en/article/dairy-producers-demand
Dairy producers are demanding a freeze of credit liabilities over the next 2—3 years. Their rationale for this is that the dairy sector did not receive any support benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many involved in the dairy industry fear that, without such support, dairy farms could fail en masse, leading to the collapse of the industry as a whole. Dairy producers are also calling for an exemption of raw processed milk products from VAT.
18) Preliminary third-quarter animal husbandry data released
November 20th, 2020, https://www.finchannel.com/world/georgia/79439
The National Statistics Office of Georgia has published preliminary third-quarter data on animal husbandry. According to the preliminary data, the number of bovine animals increased by 4.9% year-onyear, reaching 955,000 heads. Of this, the total number of dairy cows and buffaloes increased by 0.7%, amounting to 453,800 heads. The total number of sheep and goats was down 9.9% year-on-year, amounting to 846,100 heads. The number of pigs amounted to 237,200 heads, which is up 3.0% year-onyear. The number of poultry increased by 22.5% year-on-year, amounting to 11.5 million heads.
Milk production increased by 2.0% year-on-year, reaching 168.4 million liters. At the same time, meat production decreased 6.4% (amounting to 14,700 tons), and egg production fell 9.6% (amounting to 154.8 million eggs).
19) More than GEL 9 million in nonstandard apples sold within state program
November 21st, 2020, https://cbw.ge/economy/farmers-earn-over-gel-9-million-from-sales-of-nonstandard-apple
The Ministry of Agriculture has released information on the implementation of the state support program for the sale of nonstandard apples. As November 20, 2020, farmers had already sold over 41,000 tons of nonstandard apples within the program, resulting in earning of more than GEL 9 million.
14 companies are involved in the state program, which provides a subsidy of GEL 0.10 per kilogram of nonstandard apple to processing companies if they provide farmers with a purchase price of at least GEL 0.22. The program ran until December 1, 2020.
20) Hazelnut exports up 38%
November 24th, 2020, https://www.agenda.ge/en/news/2020/3701
During the period of August 1, 2020 through November 23, 2020, Georgia exported 10,848 tons of hazelnuts worth USD 57.2 million. This represents a year-on-year increase of 38% in volume and USD 48 million in value. The main export markets were Germany (3,131 tons), Italy (2,124 tons) and the Czech Republic (594 tons).
21) 1,928 tons of mandarins exported
November 24th, 2020, https://www.agenda.ge/en/news/2020/3705
Georgia exported 1,928 tons of mandarins worth USD 941,000 between August 1, 2020 and November 23, 2020. The main export markets were Russia (899 tons) and Armenia (883 tons), with some exports also made to Kazakhstan, Moldova and Ukraine.
22) 12-fold increase in apple exports
November 24th, 2020, https://www.agenda.ge/en/news/2020/3702
Between August 1, 2020 and October 23, 2020, Georgia exported 5,045 tons of apples worth USD 2.2 million. This represents a 12-fold year-on-year increase in terms of volume and a USD 1.9 million increase in terms of value. The main export market was Russia (4,884 tons), with some exports also made to Armenia, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan and Singapore.
Prepared by Business & Finance Consulting (BFC) www.bfconsulting.com Articles are taken directly from local sources without any fact-checking; they are provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only. Business & Finance Consulting (BFC)’s editing is limited to providing a short summary in English of the texts, highlighting the main points of the original articles. All rights reserved by the authors. BFC takes no responsibility and does not make any representation or warranty, express or implied, or assume any responsibility whatsoever for the content, accuracy, and reliability, or completeness of any of the articles.
