August 17 2006, 16:05

Zakarpattya processors have to buy garlic in other oblasts

The interest to garlic production is very rapidly growing in Zakarpattya in connection to the increased demand and very few professional growers: as a result, bulk shipments of marketable garlic are in deficit. There are more than a dozen of canneries in the oblast; they need 150-200 tons of garlic annually. Of course, canneries see no joy in purchasing 100-200 kg shipments of this commodity.

Lyudmila Dzyamko, the Market Information Specialist of Zakarpattya office, Agricultural Marketing Project says that 9.9% of garlic cultivation areas are concentrated in private houseplots. That is a problem. Such small farms find it difficult to collect a bulk shipment. That's why the processing enterprises have to transport garlic from other oblasts.

In their turn, farms mention the absence of garlic seeds as the main obstacle on the way to industrial garlic production. Beylo Balog, the Leader of KOLOSOK farm, says that they have to grow garlic seeds by own means or to purchase seeds from local producers. And, the quality of the produced garlic often does not meet the requirements of the processing enterprises.

Once and again, the Agricultural Marketing Project attracts the attention of agricultural producers to the opportunities of garlic. This crop is demanded both by fresh market and by canneries which increase the purchased volumes year by year. Garlic production is able to become a very good business in these circumstances.