Mersin's Silifke district is known to grow fresh fruits early in the season. Following strawberries and green plums, farmers harvested apricots that are grown under row covers. The first apricots were sold for 35 Turkish Lira (5,1 Euro) per kilo.
Producer Hamza Gokler said: "Our product is very tasty. We grow apricots in a natural way." Gokler stated that he grows the Magador variety that he imported from Spain. He added that this variety of apricot grows 15 days earlier than other varieties.
Ismail Gurses, head of Silifke Apricots Producers' Association said that apricots will be sent to Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa and other cities in Turkey.
Gurses stated that the district has 120 hectares of apricot gardens and that 10 thousand tons of apricots will be harvested this year. He added that 2 thousand tons of these apricots will be exported to several countries depending on the demand.