The US Agency for International Development (USAID)-sponsored Agricultural Linkages (AgLinks) program focuses on grapes and several types of fruit trees such as pear, apple, quince, apricot, cherry, and peach. These are high-value crops that have relatively good access to existing markets, and farmers can make much more money by adopting some simple new techniques, said Charles May, the Uzbekistan country director of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI), which contracts with USAID to run the AgLinks program.

“Our goal is to increase agricultural productivity in Uzbekistan,” he said. “The thing to do is take their existing crops and make them more productive.”

AgLinks uses a “value-chain approach” to improve the agricultural process, from examining the seeds through growing and harvesting the product, to sending it to market and on to a consumer’s kitchen. The program looks for bottlenecks in the process and tries to find low-cost ways of dealing with those problems, said May, who holds a doctorate degree in agricultural economics and has implemented agricultural programs in many countries in Africa and Asia.

Using such an approach, the project designed and delivered a series of consultations and training sessions for more than 800 farmers in 2009. The training sessions took place on the project’s five demonstration plots in the Ferghana, Namangan, and Samarkand regions. AgLinks is planning to have 26 plots in the 2010 growing season, so that many more farmers can have access to training on these horticultural techniques.

For example, the grape demonstration plots show the benefits of installing trellises to keep the grapes off the ground. Trellises give the plants better sunlight and reduce plant disease and the absorption of microtoxins from the soil, May said. The use of trellises can triple the harvests at vineyards, he added.

On the fruit tree demonstration plots, farmers learn new approaches to pruning, which pushes the trees into using their energy to produce fruit instead of wood. Farmers also receive plastic binders with photos showing different kinds of fungi, diseases and pests, along with information on the types of pesticides and herbicides that can remedy the problem.

On all of the demonstration plots, farmers discuss fertilization, irrigation, and other factors that influence production, May said.

“Farmers tend to be fairly conservative. They like a ‘show me’ approach,” he said, adding that the demonstration plots are the best way of convincing the farmers that using these techniques can lead to large increases in production. “If they see that something works, they’re more likely to try it.”

The USAID-sponsored project worked with the National Plant Protection Service of Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Agriculture to ensure that all pesticides, fertilizers, and other chemicals that the project recommends are environmentally safe.

The partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture also helps in disseminating information to farmers, May said.

AgLinks also works through water users associations, the agri-firms that are recently privatized collective farms, and other organizations to encourage farmers to visit the demonstration plots.

“Farmers are really thirsty for information,” he said. “They absorb it.”

AgLinks is a three-year, approximately US$5 million project in Uzbekistan. Along with its work with farmers on the demonstration plots, the project focuses on cold-storage facilities used by agri-firms in the Ferghana and Samarkand regions. Rotating crops through the cold-storage facilities extends the selling season of each crop and gives farmers more control of the markets, allowing farmers to earn more money, May explained.

To expand export markets, AgLinks works with several major fruit buyers, such as juice manufacturers. AgLinks sponsors trips to the large trade shows abroad, where manufacturers can find new markets for their products.

May said the Ferghana Valley is the equivalent of the Central Valley in California, where ideal conditions allow farmers to grow a huge amount and variety of fruits and vegetables.

“(Agricultural) people come from the United States,” he said, “and their eyes just light up when they see the Ferghana Valley.”

The goal of AgLinks, which is scheduled to run through July 2011 in Uzbekistan, is to help unlock the potential for growing fruits and vegetables in Uzbekistan.