Weather sends Turkish fruit & veg prices skyrocketting
Burhan Er, the head of the Vegetable Gardens Commissioners and Tradesmen Federation, suggested that “some people’s opportunistic moves” led to surging fresh fruit and vegetable prices.
“We are seeing a sort of monopolization in the market, as only three or four people set the prices. There are increases in prices of around 300 to 400 percent. Peppers are sold for 7 to 8 liras per kilogram in some places, but for 10 to 15 liras in others,” Er said.
“There is a huge problem with transporting the products due to heavy snowfall. For instance, some of my trucks are stuck on the roads in the inner Aegean region as they cannot move. But such incidents should not lead to highly speculative rises in prices,” he added.
A fruit and vegetable commissioner told the Doğan News Agency that they faced serious problems with transporting goods.
“Heavy rainfalls and floods have hit agricultural products in the Mediterranean region, Turkey’s main fresh fruit and vegetable producer. We cannot carry the products due to heavy snowfall now,” he said.
“Only representatives from big supermarkets come and buy our products. As street bazaars cannot open across Istanbul, due to the heavy snow, small and medium retailers do not buy products now. If these conditions continue, we will stop buying products from producers and middlemen,” one said.
source: hurriyetdailynews.com
