David Songulashvili: “ Promoting the sale of Georgian citrus requires maintaining the highest product quality and the government firmly supports farmers through a variety of targeted assistance programs.”

Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, Mr. David Songulashvili, along with the Chairman of the Government of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, Mr. Sulkhan Tamazashvili, and Adjara’s Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Denis Salukvadze, opened the Citrus Coordination Center in the town of Kobuleti.
 

“In just a few days, the active citrus harvest season will begin. I would emphasize that we are working in full coordination with Adjara’s Ministry of Agriculture. To ensure the organized implementation of the ‘Orange Harvest’, a special coordination center has been launched today.


To support the marketing of Georgian citrus on local and international markets, it is crucial to maintain high product quality, and the government is providing farmers with various forms of targeted assistance to achieve this.

The ‘Orange Harvest’ will mark the completion of this year’s crop collection. This year, the grape harvest lasted unusually long — we recorded the largest yield in the past 30 years, around 350,000 tonnes, all of which has been successfully stored.

At the same time, we have ensured that the quality of wine remains high. The apple harvest has also been fully collected and stored, with non-standard apples received by processing enterprises. The government allocated financial resources to make sure every farmer received fair compensation for their work.

We have similar expectations for the citrus harvest — the entire yield will be collected and utilized. Our priority is twofold: to promote the production of high-quality, competitive products, and ensure that every farmer can sell their harvest and receive a proper income,”* — stated Mr. David Songulashvili.

 

Under the decision of the Government of Adjara, a subsidy will be provided for non-standard tangerines. A significant portion of the high-quality citrus will be exported, with more than 20 enterprises involved in receiving. Two canning factories in the town of Kobuleti will accept non-standard tangerines in unlimited quantities.