The Turkish pomegranate season is already starting in certain areas. Weather has been pretty good, but volumes are expected to be a bit lower this year. On the other hand, the sizes seem to be larger this season.
According to Muhsin Riza, a Turkish agronomist, the pomegranate harvest has already started in some regions: “The Turkish pomegranate season is coming soon and in some areas we’re already starting the harvests. Pomegranates are at the coloring stage now. We are controlling all the cultivation with professional agronomists to get the best shelf life, color, size and shape. Turkish pomegranates are very important for the European Market and we have been supplying great amounts every year.”
“There are two very important parts of the pomegranate business, which are shelf life and pesticide controlling. We aim for the minimum amount of pesticide residues or 0 residue altogether. People are more understanding when it comes to both human and environmental health every year.
Although weather has been good for the pomegranates, Riza is still expecting a lower harvest this year: “The Turkish weather was good for pomegranate cultivation this year, but the total yield will be lower as per our field trips. I’m expecting 10 to 15 per cent lower yield, but it does look like sizes are going to be big. Market demand is good at the moment and I can say it’s increasing even further. Also this year, cooperating with our partners, we can supply fully organic certificated pomegranates. The volume is not too big on organic pomegranates, but we want to serve our customers an organic alternative, and so we’ll be increasing the quantity every year.”
Setting up the organic label for pomegranates is one of the goals Riza has for the foreseeable future. “This year we want to establish our organic brand in Europe. We are working hard on it. Our conventional production is also suitable with EU regulations and all of our production is environmentally friendly. A big harvest season is waiting us in next twenty days, and we’re more than ready to get started. Hopefully it’ll be a great season for both us as well as our customers.” He concludes.
For more information:
Muhsin Riza Agdag
Agronomist
Tel: +90 530 552 83 06