It’s blueberry and strawberry season in Kosovo, and local growers from around the country gathered on June 20^th to sell and display their freshly-picked harvests in downtown Pristina.  Chargé d'Affaires Colleen Hyland and USAID Mission Director James Hope were on hand to meet the growers and sample a wide array of fruit, pastries, and cakes made with the berries.  Strawberries and blueberries are relatively new crops in Kosovo but they’re undergoing a period of rapid growth and both crops hold a lot of promise.  They’re ideally suited to small-scale production, which means they can be grown by any farmer in Kosovo with modest land, access to water, and an interest in farming.  

By 2020, USAID’s Agriculture Growth and Rural Opportunities (AGRO) Program together with its strategic partners will assist the strawberry sector in evolving into a sustainable fresh-market and processing industry, supporting 400 hectares of production, and possibly becoming a superior supplier of fresh and processed strawberries to domestic, regional and EU markets.  AGRO will also help the blueberry sector evolve into a sustainable fresh-market industry, supporting 200 hectares of production, and possibly becoming a superior supplier of fresh blueberries to domestic and EU markets.