BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 19
By Tamilla Mammadova - Trend:
Nut Producers Association of Georgia expects nut crop in the country to increase to 50,000 tons this year, which may bring Georgia $120 million, Head of the Association Giorgi Todua said, Trend reports citing Georgian media.
“The Association unites together 25,000 farmers. According to our estimates, this season the crop can reach 50,000 tons. The only concern for us is the weather, which can ruin the nuts. Apart from that, in July we will face a high risk of appearance of marble bugs, but we are prepared for challenges,” he said.
According to Todua, the quality of the product has also improved compared with last year and this will contribute to the increase of the purchase price in 2020.
As he noted, due to poor quality, nuts in Georgia were previously sold at a lower price.
Todua added that an increase in the monetary value of Georgian nuts on the international market is also expected.
“Last year, the purchase price was good and ranged from 7 lari ($2.31) to 9 lari ($2.97) per kilogram. It is difficult to say what price will be this year, since it depends on several factors, including quality. But it’s known that in Turkey the harvest will be worse this year due to climatic conditions, and this raises the chance that the demand for, and price of, Georgian nuts will increase,” Todua noted.
He also drew attention to the measures taken by the government to combat bedbugs.
“Now the situation is controlled. We are treating trees with chemicals six times during the year. The National Food Agency treats the external perimeters of land plots with chemicals and install pheromone traps that repel insects,” Todua said.
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @Mila61979356