The Mediterranean Fresh Fruits & Vegetables Exporters' Association (AKIB) has announced the total export revenue in the first quarter of 2019. According to the head of the organization, Turkey's overall exports of fresh produce totaled 509,4 million USD (452,9 million Euro). The exports of citrus had a 43% share in terms of value.
Nejdat Sin, head of AKIB, emphasized the importance of the fresh produce sector and that its contribution in Turkish economy cannot be undermined. He added that they aim to keep these numbers even higher over the course of the year.
AKIB is the association that has the largest share of exports both in terms of quantity and value. In the first quarter, AKIB had a 52% share in terms of value and a 58% share in terms of quantity.
Sin said that AKIB alone exported 265,7 million USD (236,2 million Euro) worth of fresh fruits and vegetables. Among the fruits exported, pomegranate was the leader; its exports totaled 36 million USD (32 million Euro). Tomato was the leader in vegetables; tomato exports totaled 115 million USD (102,5 million Euro).
In the first quarter, the top export product in citrus was mandarin which was followed by lemon, orange and grapefruit. Turkish mandarin exports totaled 285 million USD (253,4 million Euro), thus had 41% share of fresh produce exports. 37% of overall citrus exports were destined to Russia, followed by Iraq, Ukraine and Saudi Arabia.
Source: Finansgundem