Georgia expects to harvest 150,000 tonnes of wheat, 80,000 tonnes of barley
100 units of combine harvesters of the Agricultural Logistics and Services Company of the Ministry of Agriculture are involved in the harvesting process. Photo: Ministry of Agriculture.
Tweet 
Share
The wheat harvest is entering its active phase in the Georgian region of Kakheti and this year’s forecast predicts 150,000 tonnes of wheat and 80,000 tonnes of barley will be harvested, announces the Georgian Ministry of Agriculture.
Wheat-cultivating areas take up around 71,000 hectares in Kakheti region, whereas barley takes up less than a third of this figure, spread out over 22,000 hectares.
Georgian Agriculture Minister Levan Davitashvili got acquainted with the wheat and barley harvesting process in Kakheti. Photo: Ministry of Agriculture.
The Agriculture Minister Levan Davitashvili and the state representative in Kakheti region Irakli Kadagishvili met with the farmers in Dedoplistskaro municipality, and state officials got acquainted with the wheat and barley harvesting process.
The harvest, as well as the storage of grain crops, is being carried out smoothly. This year, due to the climatic conditions, the harvest is less compared to the previous year. Demand for both barley and wheat is increasing. The price of barley is 65 tetri, wheat price exceeds 60 tetri. This is the highest price observed in the same period of previous years during the harvest. Consequently, this year is an economically interesting year for farmers", Davitashvili said.
The wheat and barley harvest started on June 15 in Kakheti. 100 units of combine harvesters of the Agricultural Logistics and Services Company of the Ministry of Agriculture are involved in the harvesting process.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food for Progress programme, is donating an additional 27,000 tonnes of high-quality wheat to support Georgia during the coronavirus outbreak. By the end of this month, USDA will sign 18 small grant agreements, totalling $400,000, ‘to strengthen the dairy, beef, and farming sectors and improve food safety standards’.
Georgia has received 6,000 tonnes of wheat via Poti port in western Georgia earlier today. An additional 12,000 tonnes of wheat is expected to arrive in the near future. The wheat was imported by Bevrili Group, a Georgian company that processes flour and produces bread products.
Georgia will not face a shortage of wheat despite the fact that Russia has halted wheat exports to the country, claims Georgian Agriculture Minister Levan Davitashvili.
In December 2019, Georgia imported about 30,000 tonnes of wheat from the United States, announced the Georgian Wheat and Bread Producers Association earlier today.
The Georgian government has decided to subsidise high quality wheat flour to avoid increase in bread prices, said Agriculture Minister Levan Davitashvili earlier today.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food for Progress programme is donating an additional 13,000 tonnes of high-quality wheat and 4,000 tonnes of soybeans used for feeding livestock and poultry to Georgia.
Georgia will partially replace Russian wheat with Kazakh grains as the Russian wheat export tax is doubled per tonne starting today, announces Executive Director of the Georgian Flour Producers Association Levan Silagava.
The price of bread has increased by 10 tetri in Georgia and chairman of the Georgian Bread Bakers Association Malkhaz Dolidze says the reason is the increase in the price of basic raw materials, flour and auxiliary materials.
About 80 combines owned by a state company are involved in harvesting wheat in the eastern Georgian region of Kakheti where the annual harvest is coming to an end, the Ministry of Agriculture announced on Thursday.