Georgia to Regain Hazelnut Export Positions after Defeating Marmorated Stinkbug
Georgia aspires to regain and improve hazelnut export positions that it had before appearance of marmorated stinkbug. The country makes focus on European market.
In his interview for the Caucasus Business Week (CBW) Aleksandre Motserelia, the Samegrelo Zemo Svaneti Governor, explains that in 2018 Georgia exported about 6000 tons of shelled hazelnut. Moreover, in 2018 Georgia picked 18 000 tons of harvest, while in 2019 the harvest exceeded 40 000 tons and this is a huge progress, the State Governor noted.
„Georgia harvested about 70 000 tons a year before appearance of marmorated stinkbug and other diseases that damaged the plantations. These problems arose over the past 3 years. We received the worst harvest in 2018 in terms of quality and quantity. The hazelnut harvest was so bad that the price of unshelled hazelnut ranged form 0.80 GEL to 1.20 GEL. Today the situation has changed and the price of one kilogram of hazelnut makes up 7-8 GEL.
The quality characteristics have essentially improved thanks to proper and valuable treatment. I mean the Agriculture Ministry measures against marmorated stinkbug. It should be also noted that the Government cannot enter personal gardens and carry out those agriculture procedures that farmers should do themselves. Therefore, the Government fights against marmorated stinkbug on peripheries and it has tried to involve local residents in countermeasure activities”, Motserelia noted.
The Governor’s decree on minimizing the 2019 hazelnut harvest losses calls for informing local residents on door-to-door basis and engaging them in all countermeasure activities. In this case, the program was launched on basis of the Association of Hazelnut Growers, he explained.
This Association had a small model of how farmers could receive guaranteed high-quality hazelnut after completion of all countermeasures and how to receive real incomes. Consequently, all instances were involved in this process, Motserelia noted.
“In the aftermath of these efforts, the number of the Association members rose to 15 000 farmers from 1200 (Samegrelo, Guria Regions). The association membership is free of charge. Soil analysis, agro consultation services are also free of charge. It should be noted that member farmers are able to buy pesticides under installment loan schemes and implement due countermeasures in early phase”, Motserelia noted.
The Government has trained 60 agribusiness consultants and they were assigned to groups of farmers. Moreover, the Government has bought 2000 spray devices and transmitted them to groups of farmers free of charge, Motserelia pointed out.
The Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti State Governor expects that in the 2019 season the Association of Hazelnut Growers exports will bring incomes of 60-70 million USD.
Hazelnut harvest has been already stored. This year we have managed to neutralize marmorated stinkbug. The quality has improved 3-4 times and the product prices have also essentially increased, Motserelia noted.
Giorgi Todua, head of Georgian Association of Hazelnut Growers explains that Georgia has the potential to double hazelnut production. Today, 1 ton of hazelnut is harvested on 1-hectare land, while the harvest may increase to 2 tons thanks to better planning and treatment, he said.
“If we manage to grow the number of the association members to 30 000 farmers, we will attain all goals”, Todua noted. Joint efforts by the Authorities, the association and farmers will advance the hazelnut sector. In this respect we should provide valuable information coverage for our population and hold practical works on local level. The Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Governor has personally taken part in these works and door-to-door visits, Todua said.
We remind you that starting 2017 hazelnut harvest and exports extremely declined after marmorated stinkbug and other fungus disease were spread in western regions of Georgia.