July 16, 2013 | 15:17
YEREVAN. – Turkey and Iran export dozens of times more apricots than Armenia, stated consulting service analyst Artashes Shaboyan, during a press conference on Tuesday.
He presented the results of a research entitled: “The Development Trends for Industrial Agriculture in Armenia.”
In addition, as per Shaboyan, the apricot harvest in Armenia is substantially lower than the harvest in Turkey.
Shaboyan informed that horticulture has the greatest potential for development in Armenia’s agriculture, as an average annual growth of 20 percent was recorded in the past ten years. Specifically, the vineyards and the fruit and berry plantations are increasing in the country.
Armenia registered an increase in apricot, cherry, peach, and Cornus mas exports. A total of 12,000 tons of fruit were exported from Armenia in 2012, against the 8,000 tons in 2008.
Also, the grape harvest is relatively high in Armenia, with 15.9 tons per hectare, as compared to the other countries in the region.