"Water-to-Market" Project Breaking New Ground for Farmers

On October 1, 2006 meeting of the Council of Millennium Challenge-Armenia Foundation, based on the results of open competition, consortium of three organizations - ACDI/VOCA (USA), Euroconsult Mott MacDonald (the Netherlands) and VISTA PLUS (Armenia) - was announced to be the unit that would be implementing the "Water-to-Market" Activityof the "Irrigated Agriculture" Project. Within the framework of the Millennium Challenge Project, these three organizations assist farmers to switch from traditional agriculture to production of high value non-conventional crops and get a firm place in the market. 32 of the 49 farmers currently involved in the project are women.

ACDI/VOCA and VISTA PLUS offer training courses on techniques of cultivation of high value crops, post harvest storage, processing and marketing of non-conventional crops. To ensure contribution of this particular component to solution of gender issues it is planned to involve more women in future demonstration projects as well as conduct special educational programs and training courses to tackle the challenges women running agricultural business usually face.

The strategic goal of the project is to switch from low value agricultural products, which provide low income to farmers, to the high value agriculture. The project is intended to offer education and training on the high value agriculture techniques as well as a number of demonstration programs and activities.

Green Lane Playing an Active Role in the Project

Green Lane, in cooperation with the "Water-to-Market" Activity of the Millennium Challenge Project, undertook to establish experimental and demonstration plots for cultivation of both spring and summer non-traditional crops on 20 farms. Under this project, 55 crop varieties, mainly new to Armenian consumers, are produced now. With this project we attempt to cover the whole production chain "from field to fork".

Cooperating with the Millennium Challenge-Armenia Foundation, Green Lane started using e-commerce tools to market the produce of the farmers involved in the project using internet and email.

We have already established a small network of clients and patrons who regularly buy products offered by our partner farmers. Green Lane's marketing team visits the farms that recently started production of new crop varieties in Lori, Tavoush, Armavir, Kotayk, Ararat, and Aragatsotn regions - to collect products and transport them to the capital city of Yerevan. Here, the produce is sorted, packaged and taken to buyers next morning. We are proud that our consumers are satisfied by the quality of the services and maintain good relationship with us and our partner farmers. more...