<p>In 2015 the volume of hazelnut exports from Georgia, in the Caucasus region, decreased 2.5% in comparison with 2014; the monetary value of exports also dropped to US $176.4 million (a decrease of 3.8 percent on the year). This is according to an official report released by Georgia’s National Service for Statistics.The drop in both categories happened on the back of a successful year, when Georgian companies shipped 8.4 thousand tonnes of hazelnuts for a total of US $62.5 million, corresponding to a 69.2 percent increase and 55.5 percent increase for the third quarter.Last year, the nut category accounted for 8 percent of all Georgian exports. European countries, as well as those of the Commonwealth of Independent States, were the main markets that purchased Georgian nuts.Exports to the Russian market in 2015 reached 1.4 thousand tonnes, or 3 times more than the results of 2014, and revenue grew by 2.7 times reaching US $10.7 million.<br></p>