On December 6, the Rivne Regional Military Administration hosted a presentation of the “Organic berries development in Amalgamated territorial communities” project.
The prospects of project implementation were discussed with the participation of Vitaliy Koval head of the Rivne regional government and the deputies for economic affairs, for education and science, as well as for the agro-industrial complex, Viktor Shutkevych Assistant Head of Cooperation, Embassy of Switzerland in Ukraine, Petr Base representative of HELVETAS in Ukraine and Kateryna Shor the National Coordinator in Ukraine of the “Organic Trade for Development in Eastern Europe” program.
The objectives of this project will be achieved through the creation of export chains for the supply and processing of organic berries, as well as the active transfer of practical and theoretical knowledge in organic farming for farmers and young students.
In particular, as part of the project, new organic berry plantations will be started, as well as the construction of a mini factory for freezing berries for their further export.
For public-private partnership projects implemented within the framework of the “Organic trade for development in Eastern Europe” program, it is important to create added value and jobs, create public goods for further development of the sector.
The project will be implemented in 2023 by a consortium consisting of Organic Life GmbH (Germany) and RSN Trade LLC (Ukraine) in cooperation with National University of Water and Environmental Engineering (NUWEE) and Hoshcha Interschool Resource Center (Lyceum), amalgamated territorial communities of Hoshcha, Korets, Ostroh and Pryvilne.
“Rivne region continues to develop during the war. Today, the area under organic farming is more than 20,000 hectares, and there are 22 operators of organic production. Thanks to the project, we plan to increase the amount of land for organic farming, for which there are unused lands in the north and center of the region. By the way, this year, Rivne region allocated almost UAH 200,000 in budget support for organic producers,” said the head of Rivne Regional Military Administration Vitaliy Koval.
Kateryna Shor, OrganicInfo.ua
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The “Organic berries development in Amalgamated territorial communities” project implemented in the frame of the Organic Trade 4 Development in Eastern Europe (OT4D) Program is implemented with the support of Switzerland by the IFOAM – Organics International in partnership with HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation and Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL, Switzerland).
The overall goal of the program is to increase and enhance jobs in the organic sector, particularly for youth and women, and to contribute to the multiple positive effects of organic farming in terms of economic growth, innovation and natural environment. Program is implemented in two directions: (1) increasing and diversifying organic exports through partnership and (2) sustainable organic sector growth.