International conference "Nuts of Ukraine: Exchanging experience with Georgia" was held in Tbilisi on November 19, 2022 by EastFruit team supported by FAO and EBRD.
Speakers:
👉 00:00:12 - Global market of nuts: Overview of key tends. Kateryna Poberezhna, FAO/EBRD Expert
👉 00:12:10 - Nut market in Ukraine in the global context: situation and outlook. Andriy Yarmak, FAO Economist.
👉 00:31:57 - Nut market of Georgia. Nika Japaridze, FAO Consultant
👉 00:40:17 - Export strategy of nut business in Ukraine. Henadiy Yudin, President of Ukrainian Nuts Association
👉 00:57:50 - Specifics of nut production in Ukraine and what could Ukraine learn from Georgia. Ruslan Sula, Manager of «Agrobalance», Landscape Agency
👉 01:15:10 - Hazelnuts of Georgia: challenges and opportunities. Merab Chitanava, Chairman of the Board of the Association of Hazelnut Producers of Georgia
👉 01:35:22 - Georgian almonds - a growing sector of Georgian nut business. Technologies, varieties, export prospects. Levan Kvariany, almond and walnut value chain specialist, USAID agricultural program
👉 01:56:55 - Georgian walnuts: production trends, processing and target markets. Lery Tabatadze, Association of Almond and Walnut Producers of Georgia
Summary
Nuts are a key product for the economy and also for the cuisine of Georgia - they are present in most dishes: from salads and soups to desserts.
Over the past ten years, despite strong instability in the world market and agronomic challenges for local producers, Georgia has earned more than $1.2 billion from the exports of nuts. Georgia is developing four major types of nuts: hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds and even pistachios!
Hazelnuts are the main export nuts of Georgia and the country is the fifth largest global exporter of hazelnuts.
Walnuts are in high demand within the country. Large-scale modern walnut plantations have been created in the country, taking into account the advanced experience of the USA, and new walnut processing plants have been built. By the way, there are also a lot of pecans grown in Georgia, although not the same scale.
Almonds also actively attract investments. One of the largest almond plantations in Europe is located in Georgia, which produced its first commercial harvest this season. There are also many small and medium-sized almond orchards in the country, where different approaches and technologies are used.
Pistachios are the most expensive of the mass nuts, and they are also grown in Georgia on a commercial scale.
Walnut is also the leading export position in Ukraine's horticultural business, and the country is one of the world's leading producers and exporters of this type of nuts.
In recent years Ukraine has been expanding hazelnut plantations at a very high pace. In the South of Ukraine farmers are also actively experimenting with almonds, trying to focus on local varieties suitable for the climate of the country.
Thus, Georgia and Ukraine have a lot of information and experience to share among each other and that's what this conference is about!