Blackberry– a new horticultural industry being developed in Moldova

A Moldovan farmer intends to launch several exotic food specialties on the local market, with the purpose of contributing to the development of a new blackberry-oriented consumption culture. Thus, Dumitru Trocin, manager of Ltd Rotor from Sărata-Veche, Făleşti, has already agreed on several contracts with Moldovan restaurants and cafes. He has also benefited from specialized consultancy provided by U.S. experts, with the support of the Farmer-to-Farmer Program, implemented in our country by the USAID-funded organization CNFA.

"Blackberry plants are quite resistant to pests and diseases, which allows farmers to use organic crop production practices", states Elena Garcia, Ph.D., professor and extension agent at the University of Arkansas, U.S. "I was impressed not only by the blackberry pie and blackberry cocktails, but also by the ideas that Dumitru Trocin implements in order to develop the blackberry production industry in Moldova", she added. The expert visited our country from July 13 to July 29 and developed some recommendations, focused mostly on modern practices of organic blackberry production. With Elena Garcia’s help, the beneficiary has become familiar with commonly-used pest and disease control methods. He has also learned about the blackberry varieties that would be a best fit for the Moldovan climate.

Based on results of the soil tests frequently performed by the farmer on blackberry plantations, the U.S. consultant has developed some recommendations for optimizing the nutritional elements structure in order to match blackberry growing needs. Moreover, for ensuring a better preservation of taste and physical appearance of the blackberries, Elena Garcia has mentioned the necessity to harvest the berries early in the morning, and also provide post-harvest cooling or freezing for further storage or transportation.

Rotor Ltd owns 13 hectares of blackberry, currently occupied by eight berry varieties. The plantations have been established two years ago and 2011 is their first year of fruit-bearing. The projected yields are of about 20 tons per hectare. The farmer intends to plant 15 more hectares with blackberries in 2012. In the next two years, Rotor Ltd is planning to launch blackberry growing in greenhouses, establish a drip irrigation system, and build a refrigerator with a total capacity of 100 tones.

The harvesting time for the blackberry lasts from June till October; while the yields are of up to 40 tones per hectare. During one season, about 30 kg of fruit can be harvested from a single mature blackberry bush. The producer’s price per kilo is of 50 MDL. Dumitru Trocin is an electrical engineer who has initially studded blackberry growing technologies based on the information available on the Internet.

Worldwide, blackberry growing is a rather new activity, established in Moldova about three or four years ago. In Europe, there is some interest in blackberry plantations’ expansion in countries like the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Blackberries are being sold either fresh or frozen. They are also used in juice, jam, and yogurt production.

Dumitru Trocin, manager of Rotor Ltd, is currently negotiating product delivery with representatives of restaurants, liqueur producers, and pharmaceutical companies. Based on the customer’s preferences and U.S. expert’s recommendations, the producer is currently packaging his product in quantities from 100g up to 5kg for further retail sales.

The FtF program provides the farmers’ groups, cooperatives, and agribusinesses with the opportunity to benefit from free American consultancy in order to improve their performances, through a professional approach of technical and financial issues. The FtF assistance is focused on dairy, fruit, and vegetable production and processing. Besides helping their host organization, the U.S. experts provide free short-term consultancy to other farmers which apply for assistance during their stay in Moldova.

CNFA is an organization for international development from USA, established in 1985, which is dedicated to increasing rural incomes by empowering farmers and rural entrepreneurs. CNFA activity is focused on agricultural development based on initiatives to facilitate market access, enhance agribusiness competitiveness, increase productivity, and improve access to inputs and finance for businesses. CNFA has a successful track record of performance in Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Central Asia, and has managed over $200 million in donor-funded agriculture development programs over the past decade. In the Republic of Moldova, CNFA is currently implementing the five-year Farmer-to-Farmer Program, worth $2.5 million, and has recently concluded the $12 million-worth Agribusiness Development Program.

For details please contact Nadejda MOCANU, Farmer-to-Farmer Program Coordinator (tel.: 022 240-311, 069 260-005), nmocanu@moldova.cnfa.org, www.cnfa.md)