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Grape farmers from Lusarat, Pokr Vedi, Taperakan, Nor Kyank and other villages, as well as the town of Vedi in Armenia’s Ararat Province blocked a mayor highway on Thursday in protest against the decision of the Yerevan Brandy Company to cut back on purchases of grapes from them.

The Aygavan branch of the firm reviewed the contracts with farmers ahead of the harvest and cut the grape purchase level by half.

“The company signed a contract with me on the purchase of 26 tons of grapes at 155 drams per kg. Now, when it’s harvest time, they want to buy only 13.5 tons. What am I supposed to do with the remaining 13 tons?” one of the villagers told Panorama.am.

Another farmer complained that he has concluded a contract with the company to sell 60 tons of grapes, but now the firm wants to buy only 30 tons from him.

The grape farmers do not know whether other brandy producers will be willing to purchase grapes from them a few days before the harvest. The purchasing price is another source of controversy, since other companies generally buy grapes from them at a lower price.

Governor of Ararat Garik Sargsyan, as well as the police chiefs of Ararat and Vedi came to meet with protesters after one hour and a half.

The governor and the grape growers agreed to meet at the Aararat Regional Administration building at 3pm to discuss the issue.