Two big joint Belarusian-Irish ventures will be set up in Belarus to produce ethanol fuel, the chief of Representative Office of Greenfield Project Management Limited in Belarus, Andrei Aleinikov, told reporters when presenting the project in Minsk. He noted that the company and the Belbiopharm concern have struck cooperation agreements to set up two joint ventures – at the Mozyr aggregate works “Ethanol” and Bobruisk hydrolysis plant. For the five years Greenfield Project Management...

In 2007 customs payments to the budget doubled as against 2006 and totaled Br4.380 trillion, Chairman of the State Customs Committee of Belarus Alexander Shpilevskiy informed Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko today. As BelTA was told in the presidential press service, Alexander Lukashenko and Alexander Shpilevskiy discussed a wide range of issues relating to the work of the customs bodies, in particular budget execution, customs services and law enforcement activities. A new Customs...

By the end of June, about 85% of the combine harvesters of Belarus has been repaired, Natalia Bambiza, the head of the agricultural machinery fleet and technical progress department of the Belarusian Ministry of Agriculture and Foodstuffs, told BelTA. According to her, 87% of winnowing machines and 83% of roll reaping-machines have been already repaired. The readiness of the harvesting equipment is 8-12% up as against the same period last year. The Gomel, Mogilev and Brest oblasts are...

Farms of Grodno oblast have achieved the highest productivity of winter rape in Belarus – 21 centners per hectare, while the average crop yield in other Belarusian regions is 15.5 centners per hectare. The second high rape productivity is registered in Brest oblast – 18.9 centners per hectare, BelTA learnt in the Department for Plant Cultivation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Foodstuffs. This year’s rape harvest is expected to be record high in the last five years. At the least...

Belarusian agricultural companies have started harvesting winter rape, BelTA learnt in the Ministry of Agriculture and Foodstuffs. According to specialists, the first 5.5 thousand hectares of rape, or 3.7% of the total area under the crop has been mowed which is 168 thousand hectares, or 2.3 times up as against last year. The total area under rape and spring crops is 218 thousand hectares. So, agricultural companies are expected to harvest about 200 thousand tonnes of rape. Farms of...

According to the preliminary data, in Belarus about 3 thousand hectares of flax crops were hit by the hot weather, BelTA learnt from Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Foodstuffs Vasily Pavlovsky. According to him, the crops in the five regions of the Grodno oblast, Lida, Smorgon, Ivje, Dyatlovo and Voronovo, suffered the most. At the same time these regions have the highest crop capacity. There are some damaged fields in the Rogachev region of the Gomel oblast and the Berezino and Luban...

Gomel oblast is ready to start harvesting grain crops on July 2-5, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Foodstuffs of Belarus Vasily Pavlovsky told BelTA. According to him, the companies of the oblast will be the first in the country to launch harvesting campaign large areas under crops many crops have wilted due to heatwave. First thing the agricultural producers will harvest the crops in the southern regions affected by the heatwave. Other regions of the Gomel oblast hope to get good cash...

Starting October 1, 2007, Belarusian dairy exports to Russia will be allowed only to the companies certified by the Federal Agency for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Supervision of the Russian Federation, head of the central veterinary department of the Belarusian Agriculture and Food Ministry Alexander Aksenov told BelTA. He noted, a programme of inspections by Russian experts had been prepared and an invitation to the Russian food watchdog had been sent. The inspections will begin with dairy...

The first hay cutting is nearing completion in Belarus. Minsk and Brest oblast farms have already completed it, BelTA learnt in the department for agriculture and crop growing of the Ministry for Agriculture and Foodstuffs of Belarus. According to specialists, so far 1 million 423 thousand hectares of grass have been cut, which is 92.6% of the target. Gomel and Grodno oblasts will have to cut 4.7% and 4.5% of grass respectively. Mogilev oblast has left 12% of uncut grass, Vitebsk oblast...

In line with the President’s decree, the women having many children (five and more children) of the Brest, Vitebsk and Gomel oblasts of Belarus were awarded the Order of Mother, BelTA learnt in the presidential press-service. Olga Dolgaya, a seller of a buffet of the Pinsk Central Hospital, Yelena Bykova, a professor of Novopolotsk Choreographic Secondary School #7, Inna Zhurkova, a nurse of the Polotsk Town Central Polyclinic, Anna Platonova, a milking operator of agricultural company...