Overall production of Turkish peaches and nectarines is increasing as more farmers turn to the specific crop. Mustafa Arslan, owner of Turkish fresh produce exporter MDA Agricultural Products, says: “Although peach and nectarine vary from year to year, Turkey ranks 6th in world production with an average of 800 thousand tons of peach and nectarine produced annually. With the increase in fruit varieties with the mutations that have developed in recent years, and the increase in fruit prices with more durable and quality production, many people with open land have left different kinds of products and turned to fruit growing and farming.”
Naturally this has led to more volumes being harvested this year, Arslan says. “And so, overall production increased. Although it changes depending on the weather conditions, we can say that we are in a season with normal yields this season. We can assume that the production will continue to increase, especially if we consider that the new varieties of seedlings are 2-3 years old in an area of approximately 8000 to 9000 hectares. “The most important detail is that because the producers implement a planned and correct production strategy in the production of early-medium and late varieties, the products are harvested on time and meet the demand-oriented export and domestic consumption without excess supply.”
Arslan hopes that his company will be able to increase the exported volumes to the Far East this season: “In general, the major importing countries for peach nectarine products on behalf of our country are Russia, Germany, Ukraine and Romania. As MDA, we work with European Union countries and Far East countries. Romania, Germany, France, England, Sweden and Italy in Europe, Hong Kong and Singapore in the Far East, are the countries we work intensively with. We aim to increase our market share in the Far East countries in the coming years. The main reasons for us are that not many exporters turn to Far Eastern countries in terms of packaging and product quality, and the increase in demand for Turkish fruit in these countries.”
“We continue to increase our exports with many different packaging options for our customers in peach and nectarine varieties. Despite the increasing costs in recent years and the problems encountered in many areas, both our producers and exporters have focused on better quality, healthy and sustainable agriculture. This industriousness is the reason for the increasing demand for Turkish fruit in the world,” Arslan concludes.
For more information:
Mustafa Arslan
MDA Agricultural Products
Mobile: +90 541 348 39 09
Email: mustafa@mda-agro.com
www.mda-agro.com