"The harvest on the trees can't wait": farmers in Armenia block highway

Farmers from the villages of Khandjyan and Atsik in Armenia's Armavir region blocked the Armavir–Yerevan highway, demanding a solution to the problem of selling their peach harvest. Buyers are offering around 100 drams per kilogram—approximately 23 rubles—whereas farmers consider a price of at least 150 drams to be acceptable.

Growers say that at these rates, cultivating and harvesting the crop becomes unprofitable. Moreover, there is no time left to wait for prices to rise: the peaches are ripening and beginning to fall from the trees.

"I already have 15 tons lying on the ground today; tomorrow there will be 30 tons. The harvest is falling off every day," one of the farmers stated.

He noted that he has a total of about 90 tons of peaches, a portion of which can no longer be harvested and sold in time.

Other participants in the protest also demanded that state support reach the producers directly. They pointed out that while exporters were promised compensation of 250 drams per kilogram, the farmers themselves continue to receive only about 100 drams from buyers.

"We do not intend to give away the fruits of our labor for nothing. Let the state pay that 250 drams to us; we are ready to supply our produce at that price," the protesters declared.

Varsham Sarkisyan, the head of the Armavir community, arrived at the scene. He reported that regional authorities and the Ministry of Economy are discussing the issue. According to him, they are currently considering directing part of the harvest to dried fruit producers and processors to increase the number of buyers and prevent the fruit from going to waste.

"I am confident the issue will be resolved," Sarkisyan concluded optimistically.

However, the farmers remained unconvinced by these promises. They fear that while officials and buyers negotiate, the harvest will continue to go to waste.

"We can wait, but the fruit on the trees cannot," stated one of the protesters.

Others warned that if no concrete solution emerged by the following day, they would block the road again.

The situation regarding Armenian peaches is further complicated by export issues. Rosselkhoznadzor had previously restricted the import of regulated agricultural products from Armenia, as well as their transit through Russia to other EAEU countries. The Russian agency cited insufficient quality control by Armenian producers as the reason for these measures.

Consequently, farmers face a twofold problem: they need to sell the harvest urgently before it spoils, yet their options for transporting the produce and the pool of potential buyers are limited.

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