On August 19-20, on the Black Sea coast in a picturesque corner of the Tuapse district, the Gala Conference for gardeners “Apricot” was held. The conference was organized within the framework of the import substitution program by the Union “Gardeners of Kuban” together with the agricultural newspaper “Earth and Life”.
An industry-wide horticultural event of this magnitude was held in the Krasnodar Territory for the first time. Not only industry participants from the south of Russia, but also gardeners from the Chechen Republic, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Dagestan came to communicate with each other and exchange experiences. Also at the conference, manufacturers of agricultural machinery, suppliers of plant protection products and fertilizers, processors and other companies that help gardeners grow, store, process and sell fruits, one of the most important sources of vitamins, presented their new products.
The assembled gardeners were greeted via video link by Director of the Department of Crop Production, Mechanization, Chemicalization and Plant Protection of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Roman Nekrasov and First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Agrarian Food Policy and Environmental Management Sergei Mitin.
The organizers of the event tried to cover and discuss the most pressing issues for the horticultural industry – from the peculiarities of growing promising varieties to their storage, processing and sale. The last topic ran like a red thread through the entire conference, because the most important task is to increase the profitability of horticulture and the farms themselves. This, in turn, will be a significant contribution to ensuring the food security of the country.
Participants could gain new knowledge and experience not only from the reports of the speakers, during informal communication gardeners actively discussed emerging problems and measures to solve them. Based on the results of Apricot, gardeners will draw up a collective resolution and send it to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation.
And on the evening of August 19, many surprises and unforgettable emotions awaited all those present: a lottery with valuable gifts from participating companies, a romantic saxophone and an incendiary dance program. On August 20, the conference ended with a concert by Soda, a popular cover band in the Krasnodar Territory, and a colorful performance by folk ensembles from different republics.
All guests and participants of the conference are sure that such meetings should be held annually, and the organizers have already started preparing the next “Apricot”.
