Cherries from the Avra district of Aydin, a southwestern Turkish city, are well-known for top quality and are exported to many countries. However the growers in the area claim that this season has been the worst in the last 20 years.
Cherries were sold for around 4 USD per kg early in the season but now the price is as low as 0.65 USD per kg.
Grower Ismet Okka: “Cherry is a product which required intensive labor and a lot of effort, therefore it is a costly product to grow. One kg of cherries costs around 0.65 USD per kg, but this year the price is very low so we are unfortunately not earning any money.
The wholesalers purchase cherries from us at those low prices and then sell it to Europe for 10 USD per kg. We are going to all this trouble of growing the products and they make all the money. We continue with the cherry production because it is all what we know and it is our only source of income. Daily workers cost around 27 USD per day and at 0.65 USD per kg price we cannot even break even. If the prices continue at this level, then we will start leaving products on the trees. Cherries grown in this area are totally organic yet the prices are still not satisfactory for growers. Some growers are actually considering cutting down the cherry trees.”
Source: Aydin Denge