‘As Good as Iberico:’ Georgian Mountain Pig Meat Presented

Within the project ‘Saving the Georgian Mountain Pig,’ Georgia’s state-owned Partnership Fund and the Georgian-Spanish company ‘Native Georgian,’ along with the State Agricultural Research Center, have held a presentation and degustation of products made from the highest-quality, unique breed of Georgian pig.

The event took place at the Culinary Academy of the Agrarian University on Friday.

Founder of Spanish company Deraza Iberico, Rejino Diaz Del Riosa, and the establisher of the Native Georgian Company, Luis Sans Casado, took part in the event along with Deputy Agriculture Minister Yuri Nozadze, Deputy Executive Director of the Partnership Fund Natia Turnava and the director of the Agricultural Research Center, Levan Ujmajuridze.

The project ‘Saving the Georgian Mountain Pig’ includes promotion of breeding an Iberico-like variety of pigs in Georgia, and the production of Georgian jamon and other kinds of meat products, as well as the commercialization of these products on the world market.

As a result of studies in Spain, it was confirmed that the Georgian mountain pig has the same characteristics as the Spanish Iberico breed; the meat and other meat products made from the Georgian mountain pig, like that from the Iberico breed, are considered high quality products.

Within the first phase of the project, up to 500 pigs were bred in sterile conditions by picking out 25 unique varieties of Georgian mountain pig.

Several products were specially selected for the presentation and tasting of dishes made from the first Georgian pork products at the Agrarian University Culinary Academy. Famous chefs cooked 15 dishes and all of them received high appraisal from specialists, other chefs and the guests.

The ‘Saving the Georgian Mountain Pig’ project will last 5-7 years and consists of five stages. At present, the first stage of the project is underway, which envisages construction of pig farms, introduction of European technologies and standards, finding unique Georgian breeds of pig and transporting them to a specialized farm equipped with ultra-modern technologies.

The investment volume of the first stage is $750,000, from which the Fund's contribution is $350,000.

Within the second phase of the project, breeding of up to 1200 mother pigs and construction of farms is planned in nine regions of Georgia.

The third and fourth phases envisage social aspects like employment of the population in the mountainous regions, increasing their income and improving their economic conditions.

The fourth phase also implies equipping farms with modern technologies, establishing a European standard meat processing enterprise and production of meat products made from the Georgian mountain pig.

The fifth stage envisages creation of a jamon and Racha Ham producing enterprise and the export of these products to world markets.

By Thea Morrison