Apple chips factory alongside the occupation line

Lado Bitchashvili, Shida Kartli

 

Shako Mdzinarashvili, a student of the Food Technology Faculty at the Agricultural University of Georgia, together with his friends had an idea to replace potato chips with apple chips. After months-long work, they realized the idea in the frame of the program StartUp Georgia and established apple chips factory in Ditsi village adjacent to the occupation line with South Ossetia. Their apple chips “Enkeni” is already being sold in markets.

“Apple chips are already sold in shops and consumers like it. Together with the production of ecologically clean product, this enterprise has social meaning, as we have 12 employees that is very important. Together with widening the enterprise, we plan to increase number of employees too,” Shako Mdzinarashvili said.

On December 27, Prime Minister of Georgia together with the government members arrived in Ditsi village and visited the enterprise. Mamuka Bakhtadze said the state will assist the enterprise to export the apple chips abroad.

“Our youth invented unique method of producing apple chips, which is very popular and healthy food. We are happy that they use local product as raw material. Apple chips have become very popular not only in Georgian market but they have contracted the Chinese company too,” the PM said. 

Together with the apple chips, the young entrepreneurs plan to produce pear, pumpkin, beet and carrot chips too.