Introduction of new technologies and inflow of serious capital investments will increase the productivity in the agrarian sector and enhance the competitiveness of Armenian commodities in the foreign markets.
When presenting the New Research on Food Processing Industry in Armenia and the Region, Tigran Jrbashyan, Development Director of Ameria CJSC, said on July 16 that a new segment - industrial agriculture - is being formed in Armenia. He explained that the matter concerns large greenhouse facilities, horticulture and fish breeding. Given the country's small economy, development of the food processing industry mostly depends on the export potential for agricultural products, Ameria experts say.
Jrbashyan said that out of the 40 countries of the CIS and Eastern Europe researched by Ameria, Armenia is in the lead with its agriculture share in GDP (about 19-21%) but lags far behind with its productivity. He pointed out that over the past 2-3 years big funds have been invested in ensuring high productivity in agriculture. "The state support to agriculture development should be replaced with the support to productivity. Favorable conditions should be created for that, because the world experiences transformation of the social factor of agriculture into an income-producing sector with a potential for export and productivity. This trend should be considered and researched not only by the state, and a new model should be worked out on this basis", Jrbashyan stressed.
The National Statistical Service of Armenia says that over Jan-May 2013 the gross agricultural output (including the fish breeding output) totaled 152.7 bln AMD (up almost 3% versus Jan-May 2012).
According to the research results, there are some 900 greenhouse facilities in Armenia with a total area of 130 ha (the biggest greenhouse facility of Armenia occupies an area of 5 ha). 60% of the greenhouse facilities in Armenia grow only vegetables, while the other 40% grow flowers and ornamental plants. Ameria experts forecast moderate development of the greenhouse facilities in Armenia for the next 5 years mainly due to big facilities. In the meantime, the experts say, the small and medium-sized greenhouse facilities in Armenia are not promising.
The research revealed upward trends in horticulture and viticulture in Armenia. 2/3 of the total horticultural lands in Armenia is concentrated in 4 regions: Armavir, Ararat, Aragatsotn, and Kotayk. The share of Ararat and Armavir in total was the largest: in 2012 these two regions ensured 50% of the total production. According to the research, climate conditions are the main risk for development of the given segment. The research showed that the average annual growth of fish farms for the last 10 years totaled 28.5%, with the actual volume of the fish exports growing over 4.7- fold. Ameria experts forecast moderate growth of fish industry for the next 5 years. They say the given segment is promising enough, but there are two major tasks in the regulatory framework that need solution.
Ameria Group is the majority shareholder of Ameriabank with 99.99%. Ameria Group comprises Ameriabank, America Management Advisory, Ameria Equity Partners, Property Development Company, Ameria Invest. Ameria CJSC is one of the leading companies in the Armenian market of advisory services, offers a comprehensive set of professional services embracing three key areas: management advisory, financial advisory and legal advisory.