Otar Shamugia, the Georgian Minister of Agriculture and Environmental Protection, on Thursday, expressed optimism about this year's harvest during a visit to the village of Bzvani in the western Imereti region.
Accompanied by Zviad Shalamberidze, the State Representative in the region, and Davit Tsitlidze, the Director of the Rural Development Agency of the country, the Minister visited a processing enterprise operated by the Georgian Laurel Leaf company.
Shamugia highlighted the increasing demand for laurel, especially for exports, which he said have reached a “record” $20 million within the first five months of the year, with a significant portion going to the Chinese market.
"Overall, we anticipate a good harvest this year across all major crops that we produce. I believe we are in for a successful year; naturally, we stand by our farmers”, he said.
The Ministry said Georgian Laurel Leaf had received a substantial grant of GEL 570,000 from the co-financing programme for processing and storage enterprises, which had contributed to the employment of 35 individuals.
The company’s seasonal production of approximately 200 tonnes of dry bay leaves is exported to China.
