ALİ HAYDAR GÖREN: HAZELNUT INDUSTRY CONTINUES TO WORK AT FULL SPEED

Ali Haydar Gören, Chairman of the Board of Istanbul Hazelnut and Products Exporters' Association (İFMİB), said, "Hazelnut industry has contracts made until September."

Ali Haydar Gören, Chairman of İFMİB Board of Directors, stated that the biggest recipient of Turkish hazelnut is EU countries, especially Italy.

Indicating that chocolate production in Italy did not decrease even during the fastest period of the epidemic, Gören informed that the Turkish hazelnut industry had contracts made until September.

Pointing out that the Turkish Grain Board (TMO), which has released 20 thousand tons of the 2018 crop in its stocks, has put 20 thousand tons of hazelnuts in the tender, Gören notified, "These will be reflected in exports as well. There has been no shrinkage in demand until now. We think that this situation will continue in April but our only concern is that we might face possible problems in terms of logistics. If the countries close their doors, if the entry and exit slows down, the sector will experience difficulties. We may need solutions that can relax our companies especially in terms of finance."

Gören added that hazelnut industry continues to work by providing hygienic conditions above normal in production areas and processing plants and concluded:

"The coronavirus has influenced the whole world, but for the continuation of human life, the economy has to continue in some way. Especially, it is not possible to stop production in food products. Also, in order for people to continue their lives, employment should not decrease. As hazelnut industry, we continue our work at full speed. Maximum safety in production. The number of shifts has been increased in order to minimize the contact of employees in the facilities."