Miory Regional Executive Committee
For many, the "Vytoki" festival has become a symbol of the beginning of summer. This traditional sports and cultural event brings together young people and families, offering a variety of activities for all ages: from a sports-historical quest and the musical performance "Modny Vadevil" to the Olympic quest that has become a favorite among children. This year, Postavy hosts the festival, and BELTA correspondents joined the first-day events to capture the festive, sporting, and friendly atmosphere of the celebration.
The first day of the festival began with a visit to the Postavy Dairy Plant by youth from the Postavy region and journalists. As noted by the festival co-organizer, Director of BelBrandAudit LLC Valantina Dynich, such a project is necessary for "Vytaki" as a career guidance component.
Plant Director Georgy Kostin showed guests all stages of cheese production, shared the plant's history, and outlined future plans. "Currently, within the framework of the state program "One Region - One Project", equipment for cottage cheese production is being installed. A milk bottling line has already been installed, with plans to commission it during the fourth quarter. Furthermore, we have not been idle in previous years: to expand production, we modernized the boiler house, increasing its capacity by one and a half times. Currently, the reconstruction of the first stage of wastewater treatment facilities has been completed. We have increased the capacity of the treatment facilities by more than two and a half times and continue modernization efforts. Procurement of a line for slicing and packaging cheese is also planned. In the future, we intend to expand cheese production by increasing both the product range and manufacturing capacities," he said.
The majority of the Postavy Dairy Plant's products are exported. "Last year, exports amounted to over $40 million. Also, yesterday, within the framework of the "BelAgro" exhibition, an agreement was reached on the supply of a batch of cheese to Uzbekistan. We had previously worked with these partners, but unfortunately, this cooperation stalled for two years. Yesterday, at the exhibition, a new agreement was reached," the director added.
Over its 85-year history, the plant has experienced much: it operated during the war years, was temporarily transferred to another enterprise, and was left empty. Yet today its products are widely recognized: under the "Postavy Gorodok" brand, the plant produces butter, sour cream with varying fat content, milk, kefir, ryazhenka, baked milk, and cheese. The dairy plant provides competitive working conditions and remuneration, offers various forms of housing support, and implements numerous other initiatives.
The Postavy Dairy Plant hosted the round-table seminar "Belarus – Brand of Youth". During the event, young participants discussed the importance of remaining in their home regions, exchanged ideas on improving existing conditions, and were informed about opportunities already available to them. Furthermore, the youth took part in a creative master class focused on expressing emotions through writing, drawing inspiration from their experiences.
The day’s program continued with an artistic interactive session organized by the "ArtHaos" gallery. Alongside the artists, the festival’s young guests helped decorate the new skate and roller park. Following last year’s tradition, "poscilki" (traditional blankets woven in Belarusian villages in the late 19th–20th centuries) were used for the decoration. This year, however, Belarusian words associated with achievements and victories were incorporated into the patterns. "We seamlessly integrated them into the design to bridge art and sport," explained the concept’s author, Belarusian artist Sergei Ashukha.
Unfortunately, the rain prevented the paint from drying properly, but gallery representatives devised a solution. "Naturally, it is regrettable that the effort was compromised, as we strove to apply the pattern correctly and wanted the children to stay engaged. However, we remain optimistic. This phase functioned more as a hands-on workshop. The children learned how to handle a brush and how the paint adheres. We will leave the materials with them, as our goal is for the children to complete the project independently," stated the gallery director, Liliya Lukashenko.
A young resident of Postavy, Alisa Yurkova, shared that she came to the master class with friends. They had been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the festival in their city, and even the warning about rain could not stop them. "It's great that you can get involved in creating something that will decorate the city. I have a scooter and roller skates, so I'll come here to ride and happily remember how I myself decorated the square," the girl shared.
Angelina Portunova studies at an art school, and she saw the master class as an opportunity to try her hand at something new. "It was a lot of fun, and I only walked away with positive impressions," Angelina noted.
The day continued with the presentation of the "Ежа з сэнсам" project. Guests of the sports and cultural festival "Вытокі" were introduced to local cuisine dishes, with an emphasis on their originality and unique serving styles. The presentation was carried out by the folk club of national cuisine, games, and rituals "Традиция" under the Center for Culture and Folk Creativity of the Postavy District.
The center's director, Ksenia Gresko, noted that the emphasis was placed on potato dishes, as it is well-deservedly called the second bread in our country. All the presented dishes are included in the register of intangible cultural heritage of Belarus.
For instance, in the Postavy district, even standard draniki are prepared in a special way—with cottage cheese. The director explained that while it has not been officially established why ancestors prepared draniki in this manner, there are several hypotheses: "Every Belarusian family had its own farmstead. Naturally, the cow that sustained the household was always present. Dairy products were abundant, which is precisely how cottage cheese began to be added.
Additionally, in Postavy they prepare unusual dumplings with "souls". "Initially, dumplings were of various kinds, made from flour. Later, when potatoes began to play a significant role in the diet of Belarusians, potato dumplings started to be made. At first, they were prepared without filling – simply balls of grated potatoes. Over time, a 'soul' was added. Initially, this was a memorial dish, prepared for the 'mourning table'. However, over time it became less festive, although it still remains not so simple to prepare. Therefore, perhaps, when family or friends gather on Sunday, they adorn our table," said Ksenia Hresko. The filling in the dumplings can be completely different, but in Postavy, minced meat and lard with dill are traditionally used.
Among the dishes there are many other treats: fried dough strips, birch kvass, bread kissel, and many others. "Such dishes are still prepared in our families," emphasized the director of the center.
"Vytki" in Postavy are just gaining momentum. The first day of the festival concluded with an evening outdoor screening of the film "World Champion". Tomorrow, guests will look forward to new events: a sports and historical quest will take place, a modern skate and roller park with a workout area will open, the festival opening ceremony and the musical production "Moadny Vadevil" will be held. And on Saturday, an Olympic quest long loved by all young participants will take place, where they will have a chance to win smartwatches, a Bluetooth speaker, or a power bank.