BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 9
By Tamilla Mammadova - Trend:
The US Department of Agriculture, through its Food for Progress program, is donating an additional 27,000 tons of high-quality US wheat to support Georgia during this outbreak, said the US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan, Trend reports citing the embassy's website.
"This is in addition to the 27,000 tons of US wheat delivered this past December. As other countries are banning export of their wheat and grains, the US is finding ways to help by providing more," she said in her message published on the embassy's website.
Degnan went on to add that the US wheat is being provided through a $14.5 million program called Food for Progress.
"We are working with great partners on this project including Land O’Lakes Venture 37, Michigan State University, and the Georgian Farmers Association in collaboration with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, the National Food Agency, and Georgia’s Innovation and Technology Agency," said the envoy.
She noted that by the end of this month, USDA will sign 18 small grant agreements, totaling $400,000, to strengthen the dairy, beef, and farming sectors, and improve food safety standards.
In 2019, around 27,000 tons of wheat were delivered to the Georgian port of Poti as part of the Food and Development Program of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The program began three years ago with an agreement between the US and Georgia.
A five-year program with a budget of over $14 million is being implemented by Land O'Lakes, one of America's leading agribusiness and food companies, in partnership with the Government of Georgia, the University of Michigan, and the Georgian Farmers Association (GFA).
The aim of the program is to support the development of agriculture in Georgia and promote the well-being of the population.
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