BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr.13
By Fidan Babayeva – Trend:
Major domestic suppliers of dairy products in Azerbaijan increased the sales volume, Samir Eyyubov, chairman of the Azerbaijani Association of Producers and Exporters of Milk and Dairy Products (ASEB), told Trend on April 13.
According to the chairman, no significant changes were observed in the dairy industry of Azerbaijan in the first quarter of this year.
“Small and medium-sized enterprises are more susceptible to the strong influence of the pandemic and quarantine regime. Dairy producers are participants in the HoReCa market, and with the closure of all the enterprises of this market in the country, they experienced a sharp decline in sales. That is, if the situation does not recover in the near future, the small dairy enterprises will be forced to close," he said.
Speaking about the difficulties of large enterprises, Eyyubov noted that the lack of the necessary amount of money is their biggest problem.
"I believe that this is not only due to the spread of coronavirus infection. For a number of reasons, payment in the retail chains of goods to large and medium-sized enterprises is delayed. Due to a delay in funds, manufacturers cannot timely receive the necessary amount, and so fail to pay farmers on time," he said.
The chairman also noted that in 2019, the monthly income from export of dairy products from Azerbaijan amounted to $1.5 million, which in annual terms amounted to $18 million.
ASEB was established on Jan. 26, 2018. It supports the development of entrepreneurship in the field of milk and dairy products, applies new technologies in this area. Each legal and natural person acting in the field of milk and dairy products, having provided the relevant documents, can become a member of the Association.