French Fries to Be Made in Georgia

Georgia-produced French fries by local Freco Company are to appear on the market this autumn. With an investment amounting to GEL 68,000, the construction works of the facility are already underway and are scheduled to be completed mid-August, 2016.

The company grows a special type of potato best suited for French fries and intends to produce 150,000 tons in 6 months. According to Freco’s representatives, the demand for fries, especially frozen fries, is increasing in the world market. Thus, during the first three years the company aims to substitute imported products in the Georgian market, with the ultimate aim of producing enough to then also export.

The majority of frozen Freco French fries – about 90 percent – are to be sold to restaurants, bars and hotels while the remaining 10 percent will be sold to local supermarkets.

Freco is also testing potatoes for chip production.

The Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, in the framework of the state program ‘Produce in Georgia,’ transferred 1,386 square meters of non-agricultural land in the Muskhi village, Akhaltsikhe region, southwestern Georgia, to Freco for a symbolic price of 1 GEL.

Produce in Georgia is a government program designed to stimulate domestic production. The program has already funded 171 companies with a total investment exceeding GEL 395 million and provided workplaces for 7,600 people.

Eka Karsaulidze