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Alysh Dan: a mountain apricot community

22.07.2016

The Farmer Cooperative ‘Alysh Dan’ was established in 2008 and is currently comprised of 1 200 members, including 63 households of bio-farmers. The cooperative produces organic products for domestic and export markets. Alysh Dan is located in the mountain village Kara-Bak, in the Batken region in southern Kyrgyzstan. Batken province is commonly known as “the land of apricots” because the region’s native apricots grow here. Apricot farming is one of the main sources of income for the local people. Local communities, mostly small-scale farmers, cultivate and process apricots, using them to produce juices, jams and dried apricots called ‘kuraga’.

Alysh Dan is engaged in the production and processing of certified organic apricots. The cooperative obtained a certificate of organic agricultural production from the Swiss company IMO, Institute for Marketecology.

Why organic? “The understanding of the true values of organic products is growing, and there is a great demand for our dried apricots at international markets,” says Turusnali Tolomushov, head of Alysh Dan. ‘But there is a huge challenge there for us: to reach those markets.”

Alysh Dan is one of the pioneers of the organic movement among apricot farmers in Central Asia. The cooperative is a member of the national network Federation of organic development ‘BIO-Kg”, which has established ten organic areas (aimaks) in Kyrgyzstan.

The annual potential capacity of Alysh Dan for processing apricots is 300 tonnes. Currently, with 7 000 hectares of apricot orchards, the cooperative is producing 20 000 tonnes of dried apricots.

Alysh Dan is striving to increase the number of organic farmers in the Batken region to meet the volume demand of international markets and thus to improve the livelihoods of local communities. To promote its products, Alysh Dan catches any opportunity to participate in exhibitions and trade fairs in and outside of the region and has been actively involved in such events in Germany, India, Russia, South Korea, and other countries. Such efforts have brought fruitful results. There is a great interest from German buyers, and logistic issues are being solved for the successful supply contract.

The organic trend in lifestyle of Batken people can be traced even to the construction of houses. Common traditional materials used for building houses are bricks made of clay, sand and straw. Stones from the riverside are used for basements and poplar trees, which locals plant around fields, are used for wooden parts, and as fence for land plots and for construction purposes. Made of natural materials, such houses preserve heat well in winters and stay cool in summer, making life comfortable and ecologically clean. Besides, using locally available natural resources is a less expensive way of construction. This is an essential factor for local communities living in one of the most remote and poorest regions of Kyrgyzstan. There the labour force is also less expensive, as local people follow an ancient tradition of collective work called ‘ashar’, according to which neighbours are mobilized to help each other when needed, especially when it comes to building a house for newly wedded couples or for those whom have lost their houses due to a natural disaster.

Ashar tradition is also followed in handicraft, when carpets and other household items are needed for new house. Handicraft traditions are strongly kept in the Batken region, which is famous for its handmade felt and woven carpets. Actually, Batken province is considered the birthplace of carpet weaving, and Batken carpet is another brand from the region, along with its famous apricots. They are not only beautiful but also of the highest quality, as only natural wool and dyes are used. In some houses one can still find old carpets, made dozens of years ago, and they are still look brand new. Weaving a carpet is a hard work that requires collective labour. The average carpet woven by four to five needlewomen can take up to five months to prepare, and the women unite their efforts to help each other and to socialize after a field work and household routine. Each household has its own collection of carpets, made by women. A Batken carpet is also a ‘must have’ item for every bride’s dowry, and that helps keeps this tradition alive.

News by Tursunali Tolomushov of Alysh Dan

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Photo: Alma Karsymbek