Armenian Profile Agri-Food Sector of Armenia/BA 2017 | Page 2

AGRI-FOOD
The agri-food sector of Armenia plays a vital role in the economy of Armenia. For the past 5 years, it has
averaged about 23.23% of GDP, providing employment for 34% of the population. The sector is comprised of three
subsectors: agriculture, food processing and production of beverages.
Agriculture is a major subsector, having registered on average 7% of annual growth rate within the last few
years. In 2016, contribution of the agricultural output to GDP was 15.9%, followed by food-processing subsector
with 4.2% and beverages subsector with 0.9% contribution. The breakdown of the agricultural areas (2,045,500
ha) in Armenia consists of arable land, perennial grass, plough land, pastures, and other types of land. About
196,000 ha of sown area is cultivated under grains and leguminous plants, 24.2% is under forage crops, etc.
Considering the crop production by tons, the highest share belongs to vegetables (968,600 tons yearly), milk
(754,200 tons yearly), potatoes (606,300 tons yearly), grains (604,200 tons yearly), and fruits and berries (242,600
tons yearly).The sub-sectors of food processing and the production of beverages play an important role in
helping grow and revitalize the agri-food sector in Armenia’s economy. Armenia has a deep history and a
long-established tradition rooted into the production and processing of food and beverages. In particular,
Armenia historically specialized in wine and brandy production. The Armenian wine production has a history
of more than 6,000 years, with both large-scale, traditional wineries, as well as small wine producers in the
market who make wine from grapes, pomegranates, raspberries, etc. The two main grape producing regions are
Ararat and Armavir, with more than 80% of the grape production of the country in 2014. Then follow the regions
of Tavoush, Aragatsotn, Areni in Vayots Dzor, Yerevan city and Syunik. There are many varieties, from white
and red wines, dry to semi-sweet wines, and sparkling wines. The average export price of the Armenian Brandy
(13.4 USD /litre) is still below the global average, but it is slowly growing. Indeed, Armenia is listed in the top ten
world spirit exporters.
TOP TEN WORLD SPIRITS EXPORTERS
France
Singapore
Honk Kong
Spain
USA
Armenia
China
Taiwan
Malaysia
Germany
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Source: Comtrade 2014