Hazelnut exports from Georgia have decreased by about 50%, Merab Chitanava, Executive Director of the Georgian Hazelnut Producers Association, said. In addition, in general, the harvest also decreased by 30%, while export prices decreased by 20%. “Our harvest is 30% less than last year. The quality was also low due to the rains, but that was not the only reason for the 50% drop in exports. The main factor is a sharp decline in demand in the European market.
This also affected exports from Azerbaijan and Turkey. Compared to last year, the export price of Georgian hazelnuts has decreased by about 20%,” Merab Chitanava said. According to him, despite the crop failure this year, premium world brands still use Georgian walnut in their production, Business Georgia reports. See also: Georgian walnut growers plan to increase hazelnut production to 100,000 tons by 2025 (video) “Ferrero has also bought a significant amount of hazelnuts from Georgia this year. This is an indication that, despite the overall low quality of the crop, there are still high quality nuts available. In general, Ferrero annually expands its portfolio of purchases in Georgia. This year they bought much more than last year - about 3,000 tons of whole nuts. The ...