Formation au marketing agricole et à l'exportation à Tbilissi

Présentation du programme

Producing a good crop is only half the task; selling it at a fair price, to the right buyer, in a form that buyer wants is the other half. This five-day programme in Tbilisi covers the practical side of agricultural marketing: market research, segmentation, pricing, channels, branding, export requirements and the marketing plan that brings them together.

Georgia offers a working example of a small agricultural economy repositioning itself through markets. Agriculture’s share of GDP fell from 7.6% in 2022 to a preliminary 5.9% in 2025 according to Geostat, even though output kept growing, because services and trade grew faster. For producers and agencies, the response has been to compete on value rather than volume: origin products, processing, quality and new export markets.

Wine is the clearest case. The National Wine Agency reports that Georgia exported 82.3 million litres of wine worth about USD 245 million to 70 countries in January to November 2025, while the average export price rose to USD 2.98 per litre. In strategic markets such as the United States, Japan and the United Kingdom, average prices were well above USD 5 per litre, showing how positioning and branding change returns.

Public and donor support has followed this market focus. The government’s Agriculture and Rural Development Strategy 2021–2027 targets competitiveness, sustainable resource use and food safety; the EU’s ENPARD programme has supported rural development since 2013; and state schemes such as the Preferential Agrocredit project help producers and processors invest. These provide the case material for the week.

Risalat works with ministries, agencies, cooperatives and agribusinesses to turn market evidence into marketing decisions. Participants leave with a tested marketing plan for a product they work with, plus templates for research, pricing and promotion.

Le programme renforce les capacités institutionnelles en matière de

• Agricultural market research and demand analysis
• Customer segmentation and target market selection
• Value proposition and product positioning
• Pricing strategy and margin management
• Distribution channels and wholesale, retail and export routes
• Branding, packaging and origin labelling
• Geographical indications and quality schemes
• Export market entry and buyer requirements
• Food safety and standards as marketing assets
• Digital marketing and e-commerce for agri-products
• Cooperative and group marketing
• Promotional campaign planning and budgeting
• Trade fair and buyer meeting preparation
• Market information systems and price monitoring
• Farm and enterprise marketing plans
• Monitoring sales and marketing performance

The programme suits both public bodies that support producers and enterprises that sell directly, and it is taught from the basics up so mixed teams can follow.

The Growing Importance of Agricultural Marketing

Market access now decides the success of many agricultural investments. Georgia’s Association Agreement with the European Union, including a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, opened a large market but also brought EU-aligned food safety and quality rules. The head of the National Food Agency has stated that up to 150 EU-aligned legal acts were approximated between 2015 and 2020, and producers still need help to meet buyer and regulatory expectations.

Georgian origin names are protected in the EU through the geographical indications provisions of the Association Agreement, and an EU twinning project with Sakpatenti, the national intellectual property centre, worked on GI control from farm to retail. For marketers, a protected name is only valuable when quality is controlled and the story reaches buyers.

Finance is also tied to markets. The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture reports that the Preferential Agrocredit project supported over 50,000 beneficiaries with loans of up to GEL 8.2 billion between 2013 and 2025. Investments in processing and storage need marketing plans that secure buyers and prices.

Les organisations ont de plus en plus besoin de professionnels capables de :

• Researching demand, competitors and buyer preferences
• Segmenting customers and choosing target markets
• Setting prices that cover costs and match the market
• Selecting and managing distribution channels
• Building brands and packaging for origin products
• Using geographical indications and quality labels
• Preparing for export buyer audits and certification
• Planning promotions, trade fairs and buyer meetings
• Running digital and social media marketing
• Organising group marketing through cooperatives
• Writing and costing a marketing plan
• Tracking sales, margins and market share

Strong agricultural marketing systems help organisations:

• Earn better prices for the same output
• Reduce dependence on one buyer or market
• Turn quality and origin into sales advantage
• Enter export markets with fewer rejections
• Plan production around demand
• Make investments in processing and storage pay back
• Strengthen cooperatives’ bargaining position
• Show results to lenders and support programmes

The common lesson across these programmes is that support works best when producers and agencies understand the buyer. This training gives participants a structured way to do that.

Who Should Attend This Agricultural Marketing Training?

Ce programme s'adresse à :

• Marketing and sales managers of agribusinesses and food processors
• General managers and business development managers in agri-enterprises
• Cooperative and producer organisation leaders
• Wineries, orchard, nut and horticulture producers
• Export managers and trade promotion officers
• Officials of ministries of agriculture and economy
• Staff of rural and agricultural development agencies
• Food safety and quality assurance officers
• PIU staff of agriculture and rural development projects
• Value chain and market systems advisers
• Agricultural credit officers assessing market risk
• Conseillers agricoles et conseillers aux entreprises
• Chargés de programme des ONG et des partenaires au développement
• Graduates and new staff entering agri-marketing roles

No prior marketing qualification is needed. Organisations can use our free training needs assessment to match nominees to the sessions that fit them best.

Agricultural Marketing Training Objectives

Upon successful completion of this Agricultural Marketing Training, participants will be able to:

• Explain the role of marketing in agricultural enterprises and value chains
• Conduct practical market research for an agricultural product
• Segment customers and select target markets
• Develop a value proposition and positioning for a product
• Set pricing objectives and choose pricing methods
• Design distribution channels for domestic and export markets
• Use branding, packaging and origin labels effectively
• Apply food safety and quality requirements as part of the offer
• Plan promotional campaigns and buyer engagement
• Write, cost and monitor a farm or enterprise marketing plan
• Coordinate group marketing through cooperatives and associations

Every objective is practised on real Georgian and regional examples, then applied to a product chosen by each participant team.

Contenu et structure du programme

Agricultural Marketing Training Methodology

The programme is interactive and built on adult learning principles. Short inputs lead into case analysis, calculation exercises and team work on a product each group knows well.

Le programme associe :

• Facilitator-led sessions on marketing concepts and tools
• Case studies from Georgia’s wine, horticulture and dairy sectors
• Analysis of real export and price data
• Market research and survey design exercises
• Segmentation and positioning workshops
• Price and margin calculations in spreadsheets
• Channel comparison simulations
• Branding and packaging critique sessions
• Promotional campaign design
• Team project carried through all five days
• Peer review and panel presentations
• Templates ready for use at work

Sessions are adapted to the cohort, with more export focus for trade-oriented groups and more cooperative marketing for groups working with smallholders.

Résultats attendus

Upon completion of this Agricultural Marketing Training, participants will be able to:

• Run practical market research before investing
• Choose target markets with clear reasons
• Position products to earn better prices
• Set prices using costs, competition and value
• Select channels that match volume and quality
• Build brands and use origin labels effectively
• Plan and budget promotional campaigns
• Prepare for export buyer and regulatory requirements
• Manage and review a written marketing plan

Together, these outcomes help producers and agencies move from selling whatever is harvested to producing what buyers will pay for.

Institutional Application of Agricultural Marketing Training

Ce programme aide les organisations à renforcer :

• Market intelligence and price monitoring
• Export promotion and buyer linkage services
• Cooperative and group marketing support
• Branding and origin product programmes
• Quality and food safety communication
• Assessment of market risk in grants and loans
• Marketing advice in extension services
• Trade fair and promotion planning
• Value chain programme design
• Monitoring of sales and market results

Les participants repartent avec des outils pratiques pour améliorer :

• Market scan and survey templates
• Fiches de travail sur la segmentation et le positionnement
• Price and margin calculators
• Channel comparison model
• Promotional campaign planner
• Marketing plan template
• Sales and marketing indicator sheet
• Export readiness checklist

Agencies reviewing how well their teams are organised to support producers can pair this training with our institutional capacity assessment.

Pertinence régionale & mise en application

Europe

The EU’s Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas with Eastern Partnership countries link market access to food safety and quality rules. Georgia’s experience with approximation, geographical indications and EU-funded rural development is directly useful for agencies and exporters in neighbouring partner countries.

Asie

Central Asian and Caucasus producers are diversifying export markets and adding value through processing. Georgia’s positioning of wine in Japan, South Korea and China shows how origin products can reach distant Asian buyers, a lesson relevant to exporters of fruit, nuts and specialty foods.

Moyen-Orient

Importing countries in the region demand reliable volumes, clear labelling and halal or other certification. Exporters and trade agencies from the region gain from understanding how supplying countries organise channels, quality and promotion.

Afrique

Many African agriculture programmes now focus on market linkages, cooperatives and branding of origin products. The research, pricing and group marketing tools used in the week apply directly to value chain projects financed by multilateral partners.

Mixed regional teams compare markets and constraints, which helps every participant test their own assumptions against other experiences.

Profil du pays d'accueil – Géorgie

Georgia sits between the Black Sea and the Caucasus mountains, with a farming tradition built around vineyards, orchards, nuts, dairy and livestock. Tbilisi, the capital, hosts the ministry, its agencies, development partners and many agribusiness head offices, making it a convenient base for a programme on marketing farm products.

The country is a useful benchmark because it combines an EU trade agreement, protected origin names, a national agriculture strategy with a 2024–2027 action plan of 88 activities, and long-running support through ENPARD, the World Bank’s Georgia Resilient Agriculture, Irrigation and Land Project and IFAD’s dairy modernisation work. Participants can see how policy, finance and marketing interact in a small, open economy.

Tbilisi is linked by direct flights to Europe, the Middle East, Türkiye and Central Asia. Many nationalities can enter Georgia without a visa, and others can apply online, but rules differ by passport, so participants should check current requirements early. Risalat provides visa guidance and airport pickup, and any site visits are confirmed with host organisations.

Agricultural Marketing Training Deliverables

Risalat provides a full package so participants can concentrate on learning and applying it.

Avant le programme

• Pré-évaluation des participants
• Agricultural Marketing Readiness Assessment
• Agricultural Marketing Resource Pack
• Lectures préparatoires
• Aide et conseils gratuits pour le visa
• Accueil à l'aéroport & assistance à l'arrivée
• Hébergement avec petit-déjeuner
• Dîner de bienvenue et de réseautage

Pendant le programme

• Kit de formation Risalat (sac, gourde, mug, t-shirt, casquette, protège-passeport, stylos, carnet, magnet & porte-clés)
• Comprehensive Agricultural Marketing Training Manual
• Market Scan and Survey Template
• Fiche de travail sur la segmentation et le positionnement
• Price and Margin Calculator
• Channel Comparison Model
• Promotional Campaign Planner
• Export Readiness Checklist
• Ateliers pratiques & simulations
• Discussions de groupe & apprentissage entre pairs
• Déjeuner et pauses-café quotidiens
• Accès complet aux installations du lieu de formation
• Mini tablette avec supports pédagogiques numériques
• Visite de terrain (le cas échéant)
• Visite récréative de la ville

Après le programme

• Certificat de participation
• Distinction Risalat de participation au programme
• Documents de référence après la formation
• Team Marketing Plan
• Sales and Marketing Indicator Sheet
• Accompagnement après la formation & conseils de suivi
• Rapport du programme

Ministries, agencies, cooperatives and companies can also request a tailored proposal for an in-house version built around their own products and markets.

Common Challenges in Agricultural Marketing, And How This Training Helps

How can producers find out what buyers really want?

Many investments are made before demand is checked. The First Day market research sessions show low-cost ways to collect buyer, price and competitor information before committing money.

How can small producers escape low prices for undifferentiated products?

Selling as a commodity leaves little margin. The Second Day positioning sessions and the wine case study show how grading, value addition and origin can support better prices.

How can prices be set when costs and markets keep changing?

Pricing by habit often loses money. The Third Day pricing sessions combine cost, competition and value methods and build a simple calculator participants can update.

How can a business choose between local and export channels?

Each channel has different volume, quality and payment terms. The Third Day channel model compares routes side by side so the choice is based on margins and risk.

How can origin names and quality labels add real value?

A protected name helps only if quality is controlled and buyers know the story. The Fourth Day covers geographical indications, labelling and the quality controls behind marketing claims.

How can exporters meet EU and other buyer requirements?

Rejections and failed audits damage reputation. The Fourth Day sessions on food safety, DCFTA rules and export documentation help teams prepare before approaching buyers.

How can marketing plans be kept alive after they are written?

Plans are often filed and forgotten. The Fifth Day covers budgeting, indicators and review routines that make the plan a working management tool.

Questions fréquentes

Who should attend the Agricultural Marketing Training in Tbilisi?

Marketing, sales and general managers of agribusinesses, cooperative leaders, exporters, and officials and project staff who support producers in reaching markets.

Is previous marketing experience required?

No. The programme starts from the basics and builds to export marketing and a complete marketing plan, so mixed teams can take part.

What Georgian examples are used?

Sessions use National Wine Agency export and price data, Georgia's geographical indications experience under the EU Association Agreement, and rural development support such as ENPARD.

Will participants produce something they can use at work?

Yes. Each team leaves with a market scan, price and channel model, promotional campaign and complete marketing plan for a product of its choice.

Le programme peut-il être dispensé en intra ?

Yes. Institutions can request a tailored version focused on their own products, markets and staff.

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