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With the support of the Government of Georgia and US Agency for International Development (USAID) Agriculture Program, the new refrigerated warehouse has been opened in Kvareli Municipality
The Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, Mr. Levan Davitashvili, and the US ambassador to Georgia, Ms. Kelly Degnan, attended the opening of the cold storage unit operated by "Agrostore," an agriculture co-operative in Kvareli Municipality. The modern refrigerated warehouse was built with the support of the government and the USAID Agriculture Program."We have regular, tight, and effective communications about agricultural development with the United States of America. Recently, agricultural growth has become our country's priority, and the Government of Georgia is making every effort to modernize the agricultural sector. Accordingly, cooperation with our partners is even more tangible and productive. With the support of our American partners, many opportunities have arisen in terms of technical assistance. Simultaneously, the state financially supports interesting initiatives. Finally, additional value is created within processing," - Levan Davitashvili remarked
As noted by the Ambassador, the development of the agricultural sector is the main direction of USAID activities in Georgia.
"A new refrigerated warehouse will help farmers generate more revenue and create jobs for communities in this region. It's wonderful to support an initiative enabling local farmers to preserve their perishable products for longer, expand the market, and increase product quality and value. This refrigerated warehouse is another notable example of cooperation between the private sector, the government of Georgia, and USAID," declared Kelly Degnan.
Under the frame of the project "Plant the Future," the Co-operative Society "Agrostore "has planted a raspberry garden on 3 hectares in Kvareli Municipality. The state funding amounts to 30 000GEL. The co-operative also benefited from the Preferential Agro-Credit Project and received 390 000GEL as a state loan. In consultation with the USAID Agriculture Program, the co-operative planted a new variety of raspberry, „Tulamagic“. This species of raspberry is easily transported and has a longer shelf life. Therefore, it's easily exported as well.
The cooperative will permanently employ up to 6 locals and the number of seasonal workers will be increased to 150.
The co-operatives used 72,436USD of funding received from the USAID Agriculture Program to purchase equipment for refrigerated warehouse space and a precooling room. The co-operative purchased land with the building and arranged them by own funds.