Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The first batch of saffron bulbs was planted in Jizzakh region. This project is carried out within the framework of a memorandum signed between BMB Trade Group (Uzbekistan) and Opera SRL (Italy) on the cultivation and industrial processing of saffron and other medicinal plants, Dunyo news agency reported.

More than 5 million saffron bulbs planted today on 10 hectares were transported from the Italian city of Brescia to Uzbekistan, having overcome 6,800 kilometers and crossed Slovenia, Hungary, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan.

The total project cost is over 34.4 million euros, half of which is foreign direct investment. Most of the investment will go towards the purchase and supply of high quality saffron bulbs.

As the executive director of BMB Trade Group Abdurashid Sharafutdinov noted, today more than 5 million saffron bulbs were planted on 10 hectares. In the near future, another 75 million bulbs are expected to arrive for planting on the 400 hectares allocated for the project, which will allow Uzbekistan to become a leading player in the international saffron market. The project is expected to create about 200 permanent and 7,000 seasonal jobs for the local population.

“Our company, together with the Italian Opera SRL, within the project will create additional production facilities in the saffron cluster for the production of finished products in demand in cooking, pharmaceuticals and other industries,” says the commercial director of BMB Trade Group Mirzamurod Dadajonov. “In addition, a long-term export contract for the supply of processed and packaged saffron products worth 12 million euros has already been signed with the Italian company GESFARM, which supplies products to more than 5,000 pharmacies in Italy.

“It is a great honor for me to participate in this historic event on the creation of one of the largest saffron plantations in Uzbekistan,” said Matteo Fassi, technical director of the Uzbek-Italian JV “BMB-OPERA ZAFFERANO”. - Until today, Italian saffron has been traditionally grown only in Italy for centuries. This places a high degree of responsibility and trust on us. Therefore, we carried out all the necessary soil and climate studies, which showed that the selected area is ideal for the cultivation of saffron. My colleagues and I, specialist scientists from the Italian University of Piacenzi, will do everything to ensure that agrotechnical work is carried out at a high level in accordance with European standards.

Before planting the bulbs, Italian specialists held a methodological seminar and practical exercises with local workers, during which they demonstrated modern agricultural technologies.

- I am very glad that all our interaction is going smoothly and constructively. It should be noted that at this stage a solid foundation is laid for the future development of the cluster. This will create new jobs for thousands of local residents, especially women. Subsequently, this region will receive a huge impetus for its economic development, improvement of the communication infrastructure, - the specialist from Italy noted in conclusion.