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Before & After

Photo: AgVANTAGE/Maya Mateshvili

BEFORE - This warehouse was in extremely poor condition and unable to serve the needs of local produce growers. The produce-rich region of Imereti needed a modern warehousing facility to package and store produce for exports.

Photo: AgVANTAGE/Maya Mateshvili

AFTER - USAID helped renovate the warehouse in the village of Geguti, transforming it into a modern facility where local growers bring their produce and prepare it for export. At the height of the season, the center can prepare up to 140 tons of greens per week, almost three times more than before. And ,the average value of the greens is now $4 per kilo, up from $1.50 just one year ago. The center employs over 170 villagers as suppliers, graders, packers, drivers, and guards.

Fresh herbs and greens have been widely grown in western Georgia for centuries, constituting the primary source of income for local growers. The majority of greens are grown in the Imereti region, where about 7000 families from nine villages grow dill, parsley, green onions, caraway, coriander, cress, and celery for export. One of the main constraints facing Georgian greens growers is the lack of modern consolidation centers, where greens can be properly centralized, sorted, and packaged prior to export. Warehouses used for product consolidation are often in poor condition and lack basic necessities. This deteriorates the quality of the final product. USAID responded by helping a local consolidator, Guliko Machaladze, renovate an old warehouse and turn it into the first modern greens consolidation center in the country. After growers turn in their harvest, Machaladze’s center ensures proper post-harvest handling. The new system has nearly tripled the value of local greens in export markets.

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