Nikoyan: Infected potato shipment was not from Armenia

The potato shipment, samples of which were sent for laboratory testing in Georgia, was not exported from Armenia, the head of Phyto-Sanitary Inspection of Armenia’s State Food Safety Service (SFSS) Arthur Nikoyan told reporters today.

Nikoyan said that he together with the SFSS head A. Bakhchagulian went to Georgia to discuss and solve the problem on the spot. An agreement was reached that in case of a new problem, samples will be tested jointly with the Armenian side.

He assured those present that Georgian laboratories have modern equipment and qualified experts so any mistake is ruled out: the point is that samples of contaminated potatoes were taken not from a shipment from Armenia.

Asked by Aysor.am if the Armenian side intends to file a complaint as both Armenia and Georgia are members of WTO and Armenia has such a right, Nikoyan replied that the Armenian side tries to deal with the problem through negotiations.

Let us remind you that Agregator.pro and several other media outlets reported earlier that Georgia was going to return over 470 thousand kilograms of potatoes to Armenia. According to the Revenue Service of Georgian Finance Ministry, during the primary inspection of a cargo at the Sadakhlo checkpoint, signs of potato contamination with brown rot and и Synchytrium endobioticum microorganisms were revealed. The SFSS spokeswoman Armine Sukiasian said the information was not true and Armenian potato samples didn’t undergo laboratory testing in Georgia.