ATI Kosova, a fruit grower in Kosovo, recently signed a partnership agreement with the Promoting Private Sector Employment project to acquire a package forming machinery for the needs of fruit and vegetable producers and distributors in the country.

The disruptions caused by COVID-19 have affected the operations of the fruit farming sector in Kosovo as it has become more difficult for companies to obtain packaging material for the goods to be exported, which in turn affects their competitiveness and business growth. 

Therefore, to address this specific need and to support fruit producers with aspects of logistics, such as sorting and packaging for export purposes, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation supported the intervention “Strengthening the logistics of fruit-farming”. Equipping the sector with a package forming machine will enable the fruit-growers to have access to high quality and modern packaging.

Through this partnership agreement, ATI Kosova will improve the fresh fruit packaging in the country to make domestic fruit more competitive in both the local and export markets, and contribute to an overall increase of farmers’ income and awareness on the benefits of contracted production and aggregation services.