TURKISH AGRI.NEWS

Chairman of Akhisar (a district of Manisa province) Commodity Exchange Alper Alhat said that one should taste olive oil to the fullest... Noting that quality olives bring about quality oil, Alper Alhat said, "Turkey has the lowest olive oil consumption per capita among oil producing countries."   Alhat continued as follows: "In our country, 200 thousand tons of olive oil is produced throughout the year averagely while only 2 litres of oil is consumed per person. However, we have 80 million people and normally we should not be able to import olive oil. This is not the case because consumption is not increasing enough. Everyone should consume olive oil, which is rather rich in minerals with antioxidants and has the ability to renew cells. If you want to be healthy and fit, use olive oil for 3 meals." VAT reduction required... Pointing out that only 3 million tons of 200 million tons of vegetable oil produced in the world is olive oil, Alhat explained, "Howev...

Medicinal and aromatic plants such as hackberry, marshmallow flower and chamomile, which grow in nature in the Demirci district of Manisa province, became a new gateway to the local people. Demirci is located on the transition route that connects the Aegean to Central Anatolia. It attracts attention with its forests, nature, vegetation and plateaus. Demirci has a unique beauty in every season and the plants grown in nature have recently turned into commercial products. Harvested in autumn from the trees in the forests surrounding the district, hackberry leaves behind many agricultural products with the income it provides to the local people. Approximately 500 people, most of them women, are working in the collection of pesticide used in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic sector. After collecting the kilogram dried cottages in homes is offered for sale from 10 liras. Some of the product is reserved for coffee and snack. Approximately 300 tons of hackberry harvested from the reg...

In the January-November period of 2019, Turkey exported 1 million 229 thousand tons of citrus to 74 countries and obtained 560 million dollars in return. Russia took the first place with 214 million 698 thousand 494 dollars income in foreign sales. The 11-month period in 74 countries from Turkey to 560 million 74 thousand 790 dollars was realized citrus exports. According the data of Eastern Black Sea Exporters' Association (DKİB) in January-November period of the year, 1 million 229 thousand tons from Turkey citrus exports were made. In this period, the Russian Federation took the first place in citrus export. 393 thousand 548 tons of citrus products were sold to Russian Federation in January-November period and 214 million 698 thousand 494 dollars were provided. This country was followed by Iraq with 64 million 885 thousand 261 dollars, Ukraine with 60 million 314 thousand 804 dollars, Romania with 29 million 70 thousand dollars and Saudi Arabia with 23 million 946 thousa...

Press release... The main market for export of seafood and animal products is the Middle East... In Europe, while Turkey's exports in the first place, Middle East countries consist of main export markets of seafood and animal products industry. 1 billion 51 million dollars part of 2 billion 305 million US dollars of foreign currency export earnings through fisheries and animal products sector obtained from Middle East countries. Indicating that exports of poultry, eggs and dairy products have the weight in the Middle Eastern countries, Aegean Seafood and Animal Products Exporters' Association Chairman of the Board Bedri Girit said that they want to maintain and strengthen their position in the Middle East market. Demand for high quality products... Stating that they participated in Abu Dhabi Sial Middle East 2019 Exhibition for the second time regarding this purpose Girit noted, "United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an important country with its geography and popula...

Geographical Indication Registration Certificate was obtained for Bursa silk which was applied for registration by Bursa Metropolitan Municipality 4 years ago. According to a statement from the Bursa Metropolitan Municipality, the municipality's application to obtain a Geographical Indication Registration Certificate for Bursa silk was accepted on 12 August 2015. After the necessary examination and researches were carried out by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Institution of the Ministry of Industry and Technology, the process ended after the completion of the "suspension time periods" and a Geographical Sign Registration Certificate was given to Bursa silk. Following the registration process on behalf of Bursa Metropolitan Municipality, Patent Company General Manager Erdem Kaya delivered the registration certificate to the Mayor of Metropolitan Municipality Alinur Aktaş. Aktaş, who included the evaluations in the statement, stated that Bursa silk is the 11th p...

Population growth, industrialization and climate change are putting intense pressure on the planet’s limited water supplies, and Turkey is expected to feel the impacts in the near future, an official from the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry has said. “According to the figures, our country is neither a water-poor nor a water-rich country. [Turkey] is a water-stressed country. In fact, many researches show that it is possible for our country to face water scarcity in the near future,” said Mustafa Uzun, the director in charge of water management at the ministry. Speaking during an event within the scope of the “National Basin Management Strategy,” Uzun said that that the need for freshwater resources gathers steam with every passing day. Rapid population growth, and hence increase in needs, combined with the effects of industrialization immensely decreases the water resources around the globe, Uzun said. According to the figures the official provided, the annual per capita water su...

Ziya Şahin, Chairman of Turkey Beekeepers' Association (TAB), said that Turkey ranks second place in honey production globally. Stating that Turkey is one of the leaders of honey producing countries in the world, Şahin said," We have organized the largest world congress so far. What we want to do in Turkey is to bring together the consumers with our beekeepers. Therefore we attach importance to the fairs considerably but there should be only one sectoral exhibition." We are the first country in the world that has recorded the bees...  Indicating that Turkey is the first country in the world that has recorded the bee population, Şahin noted, "But we also have to record native honey across Turkey. Being a honey producer is a hard job, that's why we should not victimize them. Besides consumers should know what kind of honey they eat. This can be provided by registration of honey variety. Authorities should take action in order to be able to achieve so called...

Turkey Seed Growers Association (TÜRKTOB) and Economic Cooperation Seed Association (ECOSA) Chairman Savaş Akcan said that no GMO seed in Turkey, there is a law on this... Akcan reminded of the law and practice and said, “The law cites 'Bringing GMO seeds to Turkey, producing and selling prohibited.' There is a prison sentence of 5 to 12 years for those who do." "We are a professional group but misunderstood by the public." Savaş Akcan, Chairman of TURKTOB and ECOSA, held a press conference on seed and agriculture sector. Akcan stated that they are pleased to meet with an elite group that gives importance to the seed sector and that aims to get the right information from the right sources and that they are a professional group misunderstood by the public. Akcan also explained that people mostly confuse such terms as ancestral seed, local seed, hybrid seed, GMO seed, certified seed. "And also some people deliberately or not cause knowledge polluti...

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development ( EBRD ) provided €10 million ($11 million) loan to a Turkish seed company to expand its operations and automate R &D. In a statement on Dec. 23, the bank said the improvements, such as renovating production and R &D facilities, will strengthen the company's position in Turkey along with existing export markets and will help it venture into new export markets. May Seed will also benefit from an EBRD-backed advisory project to further boost its competitiveness at home and abroad. The bank is also providing its own grant funds to back May Seed's financial literacy program for Turkish farmers. Operating two conditioning plants for field crop and vegetable seed processing with an annual capacity of 35,000 tons, May Seed exports to more than 40 countries. The EBRD, a leading institutional investor in Turkey, has invested over €12 billion in the country since 2009.

Within the scope of “Thursday Seminars" organized by Ege University Environmental Problems Application and Research Center (ÇEVMER), "Measures Taken in Licensing Plant Protection Products for Sustainable Environmental Health" seminar was held. The event was organized in ÇEVMER Seminar Hall where academicians and graduate students were informed about various subjects. Dr. Barbaros Çetinel, who gave the seminar, said that they work in various areas such as plant diseases and pests, combating the determination of population levels and the most effective methods of economic control. Stating that in this fight against the most common harmful agents used to provide information about pesticides, Çetinel unveiled, "About 50 to 60 thousand tons pestisist used in Turkey. Turkey ranks fourth after Spain, France and Italy in terms of using amount of pesticide." Çetinel also explained how the use of plant protection products is licensed by various conventions. ...

Press release... FAO welcomes global recognition of fruits, vegetables, tea and food loss and waste... UN General Assembly establishes new international year and days devoted to food and agriculture... A market in Brazil... 19 December 2019, New York/Rome - FAO welcomes today's decision by the United Nations to create two new international days and one international year devoted to issues directly related to food and agriculture. The UN General Assembly adopted resolutions designating 2021 as the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables, 21 May as International Tea Day and 29 September as International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, following requests made by the FAO Conference. "Without healthy diets, we cannot hope to end malnutrition - and we will not eradicate hunger unless we curb food losses. By highlighting the value of fruits and vegetables, and the damage caused by loss and waste, the UN has taken a decisive step to promote fairer, greener,...

Iraq's ban on the egg imports from Turkey since April has compelled Turkish exporters to seek new markets, including the U.S., Kuwait and United Arab Emirates (UEA). Exports to Iraq amounted to nearly $306.45 million in 2018, according to Turkish Egg Producers Association (YUM-BİR) data, or 71% of Turkey's total egg exports at $430 million. At the beginning of this year, the Iraqi government gradually banned imports of certain products from regional countries, including Turkey. These included eggs, poultry, meat, beverages, ice cream, table salt, noodle varieties and pasta. The producers from the central Aegean province of Afyon have seen the halt of the egg exports to Iraq and have been looking for new markets. Hüsnü Serteser, chairman of the Afyon Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told Anadolu Agency (AA) Monday that the door of Iraq has been closed to egg exports since April. Indicating that egg producers are in a tough spot, Serteser stated that Iraq was their largest expo...

This year is a key moment in the international debate on climate. It also represents an important year for mainstreaming climate change in IFAD’s operations, with significant changes made in key aspects of its business model to achieve corporate-level commitments on climate change-related factors. The 2019 Climate Action Report documents the progress and achievements made in IFAD’s business model, largely through its Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP). This report includes statistics describing climate-related finance provided as part of IFAD’s programme of loans and grants, as well as the mobilization of supplementary climate and environmental financing. It reports the screening of client countries’ nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and how they feature within the country strategies developed with IFAD, as well as providing a report on ASAP’s results to date. It also includes, for the first time, detailed results from impact assessments, which explicitl...

Istanbul Hazelnut and Products Exporters' Association (İFMİB) Chairman Ali Haydar Gören said that Turkey enjoys the record production amount of hazelnuts with 776 thousand tons this year and covers 69 percent of global production. Gören also noted that if Turkey keeps up the current policy, new records may come out in 2020.  Gören made the following assessment of the sector's performance in 2019: "The most pleasing development for us in 2019, despite the decline in hazelnut production in rival countries, our country has increased by more than 20 percent to 776 thousand tons of breaking records. 56. The increase in production again to 69 percent in 2019 is the result of our efforts in the sector and the success in the fight against pests that we attach great importance to. Our exports, which reached 1.8 billion dollars in November, will exceed 2 billion dollars at the end of the year." Stating that they aim to increase hazelnut production in 2023, "Turki...

Marmaris Chamber of Commerce (MTO) Chairman Mutlu Ayhan said that the identified specialities of  Marmaris pine honey has been registered... "Pine honey of Marmaris (a district of Muğla province), produced by traditional methods, has received 'Geographical Sign Registration Certificate' that we we applied as Chamber of Commerce 4 years ago," Mutlu Ayhan announced. Following the registration process, Ülke Patent Company official Hakan Kaya, in the meeting held in the service building of MTO, Marmaris honey proved to be unique in its consistency, smell, aroma and nutritional values, it was documented by revealing that it differentiated from other pine honeys. Kaya, then handed over the registration document to MTO Chairman Mutlu Ayhan, Marmaris Mayor Mehmet Oktay, MTO Assembly Chairman Nurgül Candan "Registration of Marmaris's pine honey is defined by the fact that it has been produced by traditional methods and it has adjectives depending on geograph...

Press release... Closure Meeting of the “Strengthening Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services” Project... Ankara, Turkey... The Closure meeting of the project on ‘Strengthening Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services’ Project which is implemented in close collaboration the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry took place in Ankara on 19 December 2019. The objective of the project is to strengthen national extension system to be able to provide efficient advisory support to women and men farmers and rural communities, to contribute to increased productivity and food security of rural communities. As a result of this project: • Capacity of the of extension personnel at provincial level have been imporved on extension methods and approaches to strengthen participatory approach among stakeholders with importance of knowledge and information on agricultural production; • Rural women centered extension and advisory services were strengthened, and a pilot model for women-centered ...

FAO’s programme in Turkey helps Syrian refugees building resilience... Press release... İbrahim Maoruf is 45 years old and fled Syria with his wife and four children. He has been living in a temporary accommodation centre located at Harran-Şanlıurfa for 8 years, since the conflict in Syria began, where he was able to restart farming again. Along with some 103 refugees, Ibrahim participated in a vocational and an entrepreneurship training programme as part of an FAO project building resilience via increased livelihood opportunities, funded by the Government of Japan, and implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. “I am glad to be part of this project. I learned ability and technical knowledge to grow crops more efficiently, harvest vegetables from trainings. I also improved my knowledge on forming a business by the help of the entrepreneurship trainings. I now rented small piece of farmland next to my accommodation centre to cultivate and get chance to ...

The claim that prices of baklava which is identified with Gaziantep, are increased by making peanuts in stock has aroused reaction of pistachio industrialists. Gaziantep (a southeastern city of Turkey) Pistachio Industrialists Association Chairman Neşet Uçar, stating that the claims do not reflect the truth and there is no increase in peanut prices, said, "The whole of pistachios was sold to the market. Pistachio shouldn't be made a scapegoat in order to put up baklava prices. On the other hand baklava sellers said that prices have been the same for a year and there is no increase. Neşet Uçar also added that pistachio prices did not increase and argued that baklava sellers arbitrarily raise. Stating that there is an abnormal increase in peanut prices compared to last year, Uçar noted, "Pistachio tree gives peanuts for 1 year with its speciality does not give 1 year. The product of 2018 was the existence year of Pistachio. We had about 220 thousand tons of harvest. ...

Press release... The second phase of the FAO-Turkey Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture kicked off as Turkey and Uzbekistan signed the project agreements Photo:©FAO/Sanobar Khudaybergenova 19 December 2019, Ankara, Turkey – The FAO Turkey Partnership Programme (FTPP) gained momentum with another signature ceremony held between FAO and Uzbekistan at Tashkent last month. Established in 2006, the FAO-Turkey Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture (FTPP) focuses on achieving food security and combatting rural poverty in countries of Central Asia and Caucasus through projects operated at the national, multi-country and subregional level. Turkey has to date contributed USD 20 million to the programme and has committed itself for the second phase covering the period 2016-2020. The agreement signed by Viorel Gutu, FAO Subregional Coordinator for Central Asia and Representative in Turkey and Khodjaev Jamshid Abdukhakimovich, Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekist...

The Mediterranean city of Antalya's cut flower industry exported around 70 million flowers to 27 European countries and Russia for Christmas and New Year's Eve celebrations, according to the head of a local exporters association. Sales of predominantly carnations, in addition to gerbera, ronanculus and green fillers used in floral arrangements, have generated approximately $7 million in revenue, Central Anatolia Ornamental Plants and Products Exporters Association (OAİB) Chairman İsmail Yılmaz said. Having begun on Dec.1, shipments for Christmas have been finalized, Yılmaz told Demirören News Agency (DHA) Thursday. "The truck shipments are now over. We are now sending them (flowers) to places with extra requests by planes ... We have sent carnations to many European countries, especially the Netherlands, the U.K. and Germany," he noted. He stated that carnations were the most advantageous product in terms of competition. "Carnation constitutes 90% of th...

Roughly 5.5 million people in South Sudan are expected to “be going hungry” early next year, due to drought, destruction by floods, and an “uncertain political future,” the UN warned in a report on Thursday. "With all the catastrophes around the world, the last thing we need is another,” World Food Program (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley was quoted as saying in the report. “We know the problems that we’ve been having in South Sudan, but the rains and the floods have led to a national disaster and are much worse than anyone could have anticipated,” he added. Beasley even said he fears South Sudan will face a famine, calling for immediate support in order to rescue the people of the world’s newest-born state. “In fact, if we don't get funding in the next few weeks and months, we are literally talking about famine. We need support, we need help and we need it now,” he said. South Sudan, according to the WFP report, survived famine four months in 2017 only throu...

The U.S.-based automotive giant, Ford Motor Company, will use coffee waste for producing auto parts, the firm said on Friday. Ford and the global fast-food chain Mc Donald's will start to make cooperation for processing coffee beans, according to a press release issued by the automaker. "The two companies have discovered that coffee bean waste can be transformed into a highly durable material that can be used in automobile parts," it noted. These components match the quality specifications required by the headlight mounting panel and other interior and exterior body parts. When coffee chaff is heated at high temperatures under low oxygen and mixed with plastic and other additives, the resulting material can be converted into various forms. "Moreover, parts produced by this method are 20% lighter and need 25% less energy in the molding process," it added.

The first agricultural fair between Turkey and Somalia, "Somturk AgroExpo 2019" exhibition opened in the capital, Mogadishu. 20 Turkish and Somali companies operating in the field of agriculture and animal husbandry participate in the fair, which will continue until December 16th, organized by Zamzam University of Science and Technology in Somalia. Trade and Industry Minister Abdullah Ali Hassan, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Hamid Ali, Labour and Social Affairs Minister Siddiq Verf Hars attended the opening ceremony as well as Turkey's Mogadishu Ambassador Mehmet Yılmaz and deputies of Somalia. Hamid Ali, Deputy Minister of Agriculture who made a statement to the AA correspondent within the scope of the opening, said that the Agro Expo 2019 fair was the first one in the country. Emphasizing that Somalia has huge agricultural wealth but it needs investment and marketing, Ali said that they aim to provide information exchange in the field of agriculture and revi...

The government plans to introduce prison sentences for owners of businesses repeatedly violating food safety regulations as news of "cheating" food producers make headlines almost daily. Be it using dangerous chemicals to colour food to selling donkey meat as cow meat, food crimes are unfortunately common in Turkey. The government regularly publishes a list of companies involved in violating food safety but more violations continue to be recorded, sometimes by the same companies, which simply change names and get away with paying the fines and having their products recalled. Under a planned legal amendment, people involved in food safety violations will be subject to prison time if the companies they run repeat the violations within two years after the first violation. The amendment, reported by Anadolu Agency (AA), will bring gradual sentences and fines for producers, importers and retailers. Along with prison sentences, suspects will be barred from commercial activities. ...

Plastic bag use significantly dropped in Turkey as some 150,000 tons of plastic waste was prevented in 11 months with the government's new regulation The use of plastic bags has significantly dropped in Turkey since a new regulation was introduced in January. According to authorities, some 150,000 tons of plastic were saved in the 11-month period. As part of the country's fight against plastic pollution, the government enacted a regulation that ordered customers to pay at least TL 0.25 for a plastic bag in hopes to curb excessive use. The prevention of 150,000 tons of plastic use has contributed to a cut of approximately 6,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Plastic bag use per person was 440 annually in Turkey and about 30-35 billion plastic bags were used in the country yearly. An estimated 5 trillion plastic bags are used worldwide every year, and they mainly contribute to maritime pollution as some 8 million tons of plastic including bags are dumped into the ocean every ...

Press release... Tea waste from tea factories is the food of the soil... Noting that the tea wastes produced during the production phase are fertilizers of tea-producing soils  TEMA (The Turkish Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion, for Reforestation and The Protection of Natural Habitats) emphasized that tea wastes feed and heal the soil when used with compost. TEMA Foundation Chairman Deniz Ataç said that a significant amount of tea waste consisting of garbage, fiber and dust is exposed in the process of obtaining black tea in factories and that it is beneficial for tea soils. "About 20 percent of this is taken as dry tea. The remaining 5 percent tea waste is composed of organic materials such as plant waste, fiber and dust, which are described as tea waste and do not enter into tea packages. In the region where tea production is made, the total product obtained annually consists of 1.5 million tons of fresh tea. Therefore, approximately 75 thousand tons of tea waste ...

Turkey will close the year as the world’s largest flour exporter, said director of the International Association of Operative Millers (IAOM) Eurasia. Turkey is expected to reach 3.3 million tons of flour exports in 2019 and 3.5 million tons in 2020, Günhan Ulusoy, who is also the head of the Turkish Flour Industrialists Federation (TFIF), told Anadolu Agency. While Iraq’s share in Turkey’s overall flour exports was 50 percent in 2018, Ulusoy said, it dropped to 40 percent in the first 10 months of 2019. Despite this decline, Turkey’s flour exports are expected to reach 3.3 million tons at the end of the current year, which is the same level as the last year, he noted, and said the deficit was overcome with flour exports to Yemen. “With this figure, Turkey will close 2019 as the largest flour exporter in the world with its well-developed flour industry and wide export market,” Ulusoy said. The country is expected to reach around 3-3.5 million tons of flour export next year, he adde...

Turkey 's chicken meat production rose by 3.6% year-on-year in October, the country's statistical authority announced on Dec. 13. In the country, while chicken meat production was 188,557 tons in October, turkey meat production soared by 4.6% to reach 5,926 tons, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) said. The number of slaughtered chicken was 104 million, increasing by 3% in October on an annual basis, the institute noted. The number of slaughtered turkeys fell by 0.2% to 579,000 units over the same period, it added. The official poultry production report also revealed that hen egg production went up by 2.1% to reach 1.7 billion units over the same period. Poultry exports close to 730 million dollars... During the first 10 months of 2019, the country produced 1.78 million tons of chicken and turkey meat, down slightly from 1.8 million tons last year. The hen egg production increased by 1.3% to reach 16.46 billion units in the same period. Turkey's egg exports totaled ...

Turkey collected 753,569 tons of cow milk in October, the country's statistical authority announced on Dec. 13. The amount of collected cow's milk in October decreased by 2.7% when compared to the same month of the previous year, Turkish Statistical Institute ( TÜİK ) said in a statement. In October, 127,869 tons of drinking milk was produced, down 6% from the same month last year. Data also showed that cheese production from cow's milk was 57,826 tons, up 4.7% from the same month last year. "Cheese production from sheep, goat, buffalo and mixed milk was 474 tons decreased by 67.2% when compared to the same month of the previous year," it added. In October the average fat rate of cow's milk collected by integrated dairies was 3.5%, the average rate of protein was 3.2%.