The village of Xarrë is a leading citrus producer in Albania, with hundreds of hectares of land planted with mandarin, orange and lemon trees.

“Together with the Deputy Agriculture Minister (Dhimitër) Kote, the architect who conceived and materialized the idea of the collective farm, and Fatmir Plaku, the hard working farmer involved in citrus growing for years now, we saw firsthand the trees ready to be harvested and the mandarin collection centre under management of Fabiol and Donald,” Denaj said in a post on the social media.

Agriculture Minister noted that improved water irrigation system will help farmers to grow production and quality in order to access elite international markets.

The first private-run collective farm created in Xarrë is a rare example in Albania’s fragmented and individually-run farms and is famous all over the country for producing large quantities of mandarins, meeting domestic consumption needs and expanding its exports map to regional markets.

Citrus production in Albania is primarily represented by mandarin cultivation in the southern region of Saranda, where the mandarin cooperative has turned into a success story in Albania’s agriculture sector.

This region has significant citrus production which is mainly exported to countries in the Western Balkans and Eastern Europe.

/k.s/u.sh/