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FARMER'S ADVICE: ASSIST LOCAL WHEAT GROWERS RATHER THAN ENRICHING IMPORTED FLOUR
Yeranuhi Soghoyan
11:48, March 19, 2015
Smbat Hakobyan, who's been growing wheat in the Shirak village of
Anoushavan for the past twenty years, says there's a much better
alternative to enriching imported flour with folic acid and iron.
Hakobyan wants the government to do more, much more, to assist domestic
wheat farmers.
"Immature wheat not appropriate for food intake is being imported from
Russia. It's mostly used for animal grain," says Hakobyan. "To make
it acceptable for human consumption it has to mature under the sun.
What's being imported is green forage wheat; the refuse of the
regular harvest."
Such wheat is deficient in various micro-elements. This is the reason
why the Armenian government has given the green light for a bill that
would launch a flour enrichment project in the country. (Theprogram
also has the backing of the UNICEF office in Armenia)
Hakobyan argues that the simple solution would be to prohibit such
wheat imports.
Based on his experience, wheat fields fertilized with barnyard manure
give great results. Hakobyan proudly shows me kernels of a red wheat
strain he grows called "Yasaoul", noting that it is used to make
great tasting bread and pastries.
"Nothing has to be added to my wheat. I grow my wheat on 100 hectares
in Aragatzotn and Lori Provinces. I select the sunniest parcels of
lands. If you go to these fields you'll see they are fertilized with
manure. In return, the crop is ecologically clean but I cannot sell
it," the farmer complains.
Hakobyan says that he never had a problem selling the crop for the
past 15 years or so. The buyers were small farming enterprises,
while large electric mills purchased the bulk.
"For a long time I dealt with Mancho Group. Last year they called
and said that they received a directive to only buy from certain
individuals and that the company could no longer buy my wheat,"
Hakobyan tells me.
The farmer says he has 130 tons and doesn't know where to sell it.
"There are four electric mills operating in the country but none
will buy from me. They say they received instructions not to buy,"
Hakobyan claims.
Hakobyan has cultivated four strains of wheat that have acclimatized to
the high elevations of the land (1,700-2,000 meters above sea level)
and produce a bumper crop. He imported the original seed from the
Stavropol Krai (Administrative Region) in the north Caucasus.
"We get great flour from our local wheat," says Hakobyan. "Even the
much praised Karona Russian flour can't match it."
The farmer says he's amazed that the government appears intent to
continue to neglect the needs of local farmers despite their assurances
to assist them.
"All that money to enrich flour with folic acid should be used to
assist our farmers to sell their crop. At least people will believe
that they are consuming safe food products," argues Hakobyan
http://hetq.am/eng/news/59125/farmers-advice-assist-local-wheat-growers-rather-than-enriching-imported-flour.html
Yeranuhi Soghoyan
11:48, March 19, 2015
Smbat Hakobyan, who's been growing wheat in the Shirak village of
Anoushavan for the past twenty years, says there's a much better
alternative to enriching imported flour with folic acid and iron.
Hakobyan wants the government to do more, much more, to assist domestic
wheat farmers.
"Immature wheat not appropriate for food intake is being imported from
Russia. It's mostly used for animal grain," says Hakobyan. "To make
it acceptable for human consumption it has to mature under the sun.
What's being imported is green forage wheat; the refuse of the
regular harvest."
Such wheat is deficient in various micro-elements. This is the reason
why the Armenian government has given the green light for a bill that
would launch a flour enrichment project in the country. (Theprogram
also has the backing of the UNICEF office in Armenia)
Hakobyan argues that the simple solution would be to prohibit such
wheat imports.
Based on his experience, wheat fields fertilized with barnyard manure
give great results. Hakobyan proudly shows me kernels of a red wheat
strain he grows called "Yasaoul", noting that it is used to make
great tasting bread and pastries.
"Nothing has to be added to my wheat. I grow my wheat on 100 hectares
in Aragatzotn and Lori Provinces. I select the sunniest parcels of
lands. If you go to these fields you'll see they are fertilized with
manure. In return, the crop is ecologically clean but I cannot sell
it," the farmer complains.
Hakobyan says that he never had a problem selling the crop for the
past 15 years or so. The buyers were small farming enterprises,
while large electric mills purchased the bulk.
"For a long time I dealt with Mancho Group. Last year they called
and said that they received a directive to only buy from certain
individuals and that the company could no longer buy my wheat,"
Hakobyan tells me.
The farmer says he has 130 tons and doesn't know where to sell it.
"There are four electric mills operating in the country but none
will buy from me. They say they received instructions not to buy,"
Hakobyan claims.
Hakobyan has cultivated four strains of wheat that have acclimatized to
the high elevations of the land (1,700-2,000 meters above sea level)
and produce a bumper crop. He imported the original seed from the
Stavropol Krai (Administrative Region) in the north Caucasus.
"We get great flour from our local wheat," says Hakobyan. "Even the
much praised Karona Russian flour can't match it."
The farmer says he's amazed that the government appears intent to
continue to neglect the needs of local farmers despite their assurances
to assist them.
"All that money to enrich flour with folic acid should be used to
assist our farmers to sell their crop. At least people will believe
that they are consuming safe food products," argues Hakobyan
http://hetq.am/eng/news/59125/farmers-advice-assist-local-wheat-growers-rather-than-enriching-imported-flour.html