Food industry and location of industry

When enterprises whose production is linked are located close to each other, an industrial node arises. Enterprises in a node share one transport network and sources of energy and water, labour is better used, money is saved and the area occupied by enterprises shrinks. When many nodes, centres and points cluster in one area, it becomes an industrial district: the biggest are Angren–Almalyk and Tashkent–Chirchiq. A city with several enterprises whose production is not linked and which do not share water and energy is an industrial centre, and a small town with few enterprises is an industrial point. With the move to a market economy, new forms appeared. A free economic zone (FEZ) is a specially set-aside territory with clear borders and a special legal regime, created to attract domestic and foreign capital, advanced technology and management experience. Uzbekistan has several FEZs (for example Navoi, Angren, Jizzakh, Urgut, Gijduvan, Kokand, Hazarasp), as well as zones specializing in pharmaceuticals; their number changes over time. The Navoi FEZ lies in the country’s geographic centre beside an international airport. Small industrial zones were created from empty or inefficient buildings; thousands of enterprises making light, food, chemical and other products have opened in them.