Farmers in Rrogozhine that cultivate grapes say that their local industry is at risk of collapse due to lack of demand and infrastructure.
Dozens of farmers in the village of Germenje said that a low price and lack of customers means they are throwing away significant amounts of produce and losing a lot of money. Farmers said that establishing collection and processing points in the area would provide a partial solution to the issue.
Some 200 hectares of vineyards are at risk of being abandoned or having all the grapes rotting unless something is done.
Exit News spoke to Dhurata Thanasi, an Albanian slow food expert and kantina owner Denisa Kalimani about issues with farmers having to throw away tonnes of produce every year. They spoke of how vast amounts of produce are imported to Albania from abroad when actually, the items grow in abundance throughout the country. They said the main issue impacting farmers is the lack of policy in place to facilitate transport, collection, processing, and distribution.
