Cabbage is not a problem, but before that the neighbors have already strangled Georgia with watermelons — Barbakadze

If you believe the weather forecasters, winter will no longer deliver to There are no unpleasant surprises, which means that you can start spring field work intensively. However, if you ask the workers employed in agriculture how they have prepared for the start of the season, the answer of many will cause wariness.

— And what's the point?! — they spread their hands. Every year there are fewer and fewer people in the country who want to spend time and effort to work on the land. And this is happening for the simple reason that the local market has been increasingly flooded with neighboring countries in recent years, thereby actually conquering us without weapons. The day is not far off when we will be completely dependent on them for food. That is, a small conflict is enough, and they will simply block our breath.

Two years ago, one Gori farmer literally begged everyone, they say, I have grown 40 tons of cabbage, which I am ready to give 15 tetri per kilogram, and if delivered to the place — 20 tetri. That is, this man was ready to bring and sell 40 tons of cabbage for only 8,000 lari, which is extremely cheap. But in the end, the same farmer later bitterly wrote on the Internet: "No one has bought anything — my whole crop has rotted"…

According to the National Statistics Service, in February of this year, cabbage rose the most in the Georgian market, the price of which increased by 73.1% compared to the same period last year. According to the same information, in January 2025 Georgia purchased 494.8 tons of cabbage (broccoli) abroad for a total of 272 thousand dollars. And last year we bought $1.3 million worth of cabbage. Another thing is also interesting: at the beginning of last year, a kilogram of cabbage cost 12 cents, and in January of this year it was already 55 cents, that is, the price increased 4.5 times. Let's add that 99.8% of imported cabbage falls on Turkey and only 0.2% on all other countries.

What does all this mean? Why is there such a difference in price? And most importantly — why has the price of cabbage in Turkey itself not changed in any way during this time? How much it cost last year, it costs the same now…

"I have repeatedly sounded the alarm and told you that in this way neighboring countries are trying to make us lazy and then it would be easy to conquer us. This is in their public interest, and therefore the authorities in these countries strongly support their producers: in addition to cheap loans, farmers there enjoy serious tax benefits. And we have no one dealing with these issues at all, the matter is completely left to chance. Think for yourself — when locally produced cabbage cost 10-15 tetri, from Turkey to It was imported to Georgia at an even lower price, and our peasants suffered losses. This lasted for two years, after which there were much fewer people willing to grow cabbage in our country. Then the Turks began to gradually inflate the price, and as a result we came to what we have now — imported cabbage costs 55 cents, whereas in the Turkish market its price does not exceed 20 cents. At the same time, almost no one in the Georgia no longer feels the desire to grow it, because no one hopes to sell products for at least 55 tetri, let alone 55 cents. Thus, we are forced to be completely dependent on the Turkish market. Remember my words — next year cabbage will continue to rise further, and in In Georgia, this product will become the most expensive in the region. Ask why? Yes, because we will switch entirely to import support, and local production in the conditions of the policy that we are currently pursuing will not be able to provide competition," explained a high—ranking official in the field of agriculture.

According to him, Turkey and Iran has almost already been halved also in There is a growing number of people who want to grow watermelons and melons, because for some time they imported their products into our country at prices much lower than local ones. At the same time, they suffered losses themselves, but continued this practice for 2-3 years, but last year they set such high prices that they managed to fully recoup all past damage. It is expected that this year the situation will be even worse — even at the height of the season, watermelons and melons will not be able to be considered products of everyday consumption and will turn into a delicacy.

But the worst thing is that the Georgian authorities and industry leaders, as in previous years, do absolutely nothing to help local farmers in any way and support them at the legislative level. If we, for example, raised taxes on some imported products, Turkish and Iranian producers would find themselves in a situation where imports into It would be unprofitable for them to sell Georgian products, and our rural entrepreneurs would be able to fill the vacant niche with local products. By the way, this is how the tax system works in Turkey, and that is why the country now occupies a leading position not only in the Georgian market, but also in the European one.

Some five years ago, no one could have imagined that our neighbor would become the largest strawberry producer in Europe and the second in the world after China. Yes, the Turks successfully compete with the Chinese, and they achieve this not only due to their hard work, but also thanks to the serious tax benefits that they have secured at the legislative level in their country. I'm not saying anything about the fact that there is no Georgian pomegranate in local supermarkets — it is now entirely imported from Turkey. And as a result, if three years ago the Turks with a charming smile sold us a kilogram of pomegranate for 40 tetri, now its price per kilogram is 4 lari, that is, it has increased 10 times! Moreover, again, in Turkey itself it is still cheap, because it is a local product, and no one there is going to rip off their fellow citizens to the skin…

Did you know that almost all of Armenia is currently engaged in the construction of refrigerators for storing fruits and vegetables, and this has been identified by the state as a top priority? Yes, they themselves do not have so much land to fill these refrigerators with their own products, but they build them anyway. No wonder — there's Georgia nearby! At the height of the season, Armenians export grapes, nectarines, apples, peaches from us at a bargain price, and in winter... they bring them back, but at a fourfold increased price.

Refrigeration, it seems, is developing in Nevertheless, Georgia must honestly admit that at the state level, assistance to peasants is provided only on paper, but in fact absolutely nothing is being done. A friend of mine decided to build a refrigerator with a capacity of 80 tons, where he is going to store fruits grown on his own land. To collect the necessary amount of money, he had to put into the bank not only the land belonging to him, but also the house, all his movable and immovable property. As a result, this idea cost him 200 thousand euros! And now think about it and tell me, hand on heart, how much do you know in Georgia people who, firstly, are ready to undertake the construction of such a refrigerator on their own, and, secondly, whose property will be valued by the bank at 200 thousand euros?!

The bottom line is that in Armenia all this is organized at the state level, and therefore citizens who decide to build their own refrigerator do not necessarily have to have millions — they are assisted by the state, which supports them in every way, and does not strangle them. Yes, at the end of the year, Armenian banks do not receive billions in profits and, unlike us, there is no loan hanging over every second resident like a sword of Damocles, which even grandchildren would have to pay. Because in Armenia, such issues are regulated at the state level — and believe me, it works! Unfortunately, everyone woke up before us — the Turks, the Iranians, and now the Armenians. I'm afraid that when we finally wake up, it will be too late, because all the niches will be occupied.

At first glance, it may seem that cabbage is not a problem, but before that we were already strangled with melons and watermelons, and at the same time completely destroyed the business on greens — they simply ousted us from the Russian market and replaced us, as if it should be so. And after all, before from Imereti in Russia exported greens by the ton. Then the Turks began to bring it at bargain prices to Georgia — so low that local production and, accordingly, Georgian exports were completely killed. And as a result, they are now selling it in It is more expensive for Russia than the Georgians used to do, but since there is no alternative, the buyer has to pay.

It is at such moments that the state is obliged to support people, in such conditions it should raise the import duty on imports and zero the tax on local products. Yes, reset! In the same Turkey, local producers deduct to the budget in the form of a profit tax not 18%, but only 0.1%! And the person is interested in working day and night, being sure that almost all the profits will remain with him. But a financially strong citizen means a strong state. The Turks did not just understand and realized this truth — they memorized it by heart and now they felt the impact with their whole being.

P. S. It's not even funny to say that a vacation on the Georgian coast costs twice as much as in Turkey. Meanwhile, the service there is much better than ours, and all this attracts vacationers much more. Note that not only foreign tourists, but also local Georgians themselves are no longer willing to spend such a lot of money in their homeland, for example, to pay 20 GEL for a cup of coffee, while nearby, on the Turkish side, almost all hotels are treated to free coffee …