Prepared by Messenger Staff
Papuashvili Visits Brussels
Georgian Dream Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili traveled to Brussels on September 22 with a delegation from the ruling Georgian Dream party, according to Parliament.
Papuashvili is scheduled to meet the presidents of Belgium's Senate and Chamber of Representatives.
The delegation includes Foreign Relations Committee Chair Nikoloz Samkharadze, European Integration Committee Chair Levan Makhashvili and Procedural Issues and Rules Committee Chair Davit Matikashvili.
The visit comes as relations between Georgia and the European Union remain strained over the Georgian government's policies toward the bloc, its rhetoric about Western institutions and concerns over democratic backsliding.
Georgian Dream lawmakers have used recent visits to European capitals to call for a renewal of dialogue with the EU.
Georgia received EU candidate status in December 2023, but its accession process has since been halted.
Georgia Raises Grape Prices After Kakheti Growers Protest
Georgia has revised its state grape purchasing prices after two days of protests by growers in Kakheti, who blocked roads and stopped deliveries, demanding higher payments for their harvest.
The protests began in Shilda, Kvareli Municipality, and later spread to Akhalsopeli and Velistsikhe. Growers resumed deliveries after the government announced the new prices on September 22.
Under the revised scheme, Saperavi grapes with at least 20% sugar content will be bought for GEL 1.5 ($0.56) per kg. Rkatsiteli and other varieties with at least 19% sugar will be paid GEL 1.3.
Saperavi with 16% to 20% sugar will receive GEL 1 per kg, while Rkatsiteli and other varieties in the 16% to 19% range will receive GEL 0.9. Grapes with less than 16% sugar will be bought for GEL 0.5, while hybrid varieties will receive GEL 0.3.
The growers had objected to the previous pricing system, which linked payments to sugar content and grape quality. They said the rates were too low to cover vineyard maintenance, chemicals, labor and transport costs. Some also challenged the sugar measurements recorded at purchasing facilities.
National Wine Agency head Levan Mekhuzla said growers who had already sold their grapes under the previous rates would have their payments recalculated and receive compensation for the difference.
The dispute comes during what Agriculture Minister Davit Songhulashvili called an "unprecedented" harvest. He expects production to exceed 320,000 tonnes, while saying climate conditions had affected sugar levels in some grapes.
