Georgia, Tbilisi, 20 Feb. / Trend N.Kirtskhalia /
Agriculture Minister Davil Kirvalidze and Chairman of the National Wine Agency Levan Davitashvili met on Wednesday with wine and spirits producers.
The meeting was also attended by the Special Representative of the Prime Minister of Georgia for Relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze and the head of the Georgian Wine Association Tina Kezereli.
Export of Georgian products to Russia was the main topic of the meeting.
"The visit of the Georgian delegation was effective, and soon we will witness positive progress in this direction. The meeting with manufacturers was held today to decide how to continue the work in this direction. I am confident that Georgian wine, which goes to the EU and the U.S. markets, meets their standards, and it will be easy to find a place for it on the Russian market. Naturally, this will not happen immediately, but I am sure that in each subsequent year volumes of Georgian products on the Russian market will increase. And most importantly, no company is going to give up its acquired positions on the Russian market upon getting an access to it," David Kirvalidze said.
For its part, Levan Davitashvili properly informed manufacturers on the results of the visit of the Georgian delegation to Moscow.
The meeting also discussed a plan of action for the return of Georgian products, including wines and spirits, to the Russian market.
"This meeting was the most productive. Business groups welcomed the results. Wine companies became acquainted with details and following steps within the procedure. It is important that Georgian products enter the Russian market in a coordinated way. For this, companies, willing to export their products, need to apply to the National Wine Agency. This will be followed by directing these lists to the Russian side for registration. After that Russian specialists will arrive in Georgia to conduct on-site inspections of businesses. The Russian side agreed to provide three groups for the inspection, what will allow for inspection of a maximum number of companies in a short period of time and the return of Georgian wine to the Russian market," Davitashvili said.