Georgia’s Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, David Songulashvili, visited Sartichala village in the Gardabani Municipality, where he inspected state-supported perennial orchards and met with farmers who have benefited from agricultural development programs.
Songulashvili highlighted the government’s strategic investment in agricultural productivity, emphasizing the Kvemo Kartli region’s potential for growing apples, peaches, plums, walnuts, and other fruits.
“The state has financed the cultivation of new perennial orchards across more than 4,600 hectares in Kvemo Kartli, with investments exceeding ₾30 million,” the Minister stated. “Thanks to this support, Georgian apples now satisfy most of the domestic market demand and are actively exported.”
Over the past 10 months, Georgia has exported 18,000 tons of apples, valued at $11.3 million.
One of the beneficiaries, LLC Cadel Business, planted an 11.2-hectare apple orchard several years ago with a total investment of ₾2 million, supported by a ₾500,000 agroloan through the Preferential Agrocredit Program and ₾100,000 co-financing under the “Instil the Future” initiative. Last year, the company sold its harvest to domestic retail chains Nikora and Or Datsh. It expects to produce 500 tons of apples this year.
In addition to apples, the company has developed a modern intensive pear orchard featuring European varieties such as Kaiser, Conference, and Williams, and planted a 5-hectare table grape vineyard in 2020, supported by ₾27,700 in state co-financing.
The visit was attended by Deputy Minister Lasha Dolidze, Kvemo Kartli State Representative Levan Kharabadze, and Chairman of the Agrarian Issues Committee Gela Samkharauli, underscoring the government’s commitment to regional agricultural development.