The Festival annually takes place since 2021 and is organized by the Biological Farming Association Elkana, Samtskhe-Javakheti Destination Management Organization (DMO), and Akhaltsikhe Municipality City Hall. This year, for the first time the Festival was co-sponsored by the representative of the private sector of the region – Akhaltsikhe Inn.
The festival was officially opened by Besik Amiranashvili, the State Representative in Samtskhe-Javakheti Region. The guests were welcomed by the festival organizers – Davit Mumladze, the Executive Director of Samtskhe-Javakheti DMO, Mariam Jorjadze, the Director of Association “Elkana”, Irakli Lazarashvili, the Mayor of Akhaltsikhe Municipality, and Sopo Beriashvili PR manager of hotel chain Inn Hospitality.
The guests of the event learned about the endemic species and local varieties of wheat, their value, and the instructions on their care and cultivation; they also tasted different types of wheat bread baked on the spot, local products, and traditional dishes of Samtskhe-Javakheti.
“Bread Festival” is a one-day event, which is being held in Akhaltsikhe for the fifth time since 2010, by the initiative of Elkana. Samtskhe-Javakheti DMO joined the festival in 2021. The purpose of the festival is to promote the restoration and promotion of local wheat varieties, to involve as many farmers as possible in this activity, and to promote the short, cooperative supply chains of sales of local products.
