The Turkish Statistics Institute has announced the figures regarding agricultural production in 2016 – 2017. The numbers indicate that Turkey is still self-sufficient in agricultural production. According to these figures, 97.2% of the local consumption of grains is covered by the local production. In both fruits and vegetables, Turkey is producing more than the local market needs and exports this surplus production.
The wheat production was 3.8 % more than the local demand whereas barley production covered 89.2 % of the local demand. By comparison, corn production covered a slightly lower percentage of the local demand at 87.8 %.
The figures for legume family indicate that local production covered 92.1 % of the local demand for chickpea. For red lentils, this figure is at 76.7 %.
At edible roots and berries, potato production was 8.2 % more than the local demand whilst sunflower production covered 64 % of the local consumption and soy consumption was responsible for only 7.1 % of the local demand.
The figures for the vegetable production display that the highest rate of coverage of the local demand by local production was in carrots where the production was 13.2 % more than the local demand itself. Looking at the general figures for vegetable production, the local production was 6.7 % more than the local demand and the surplus production was used for exports. Onions and radish followed up carrots with 112.7 % and 100.5 % coverage rates respectively.
In the group of the vegetables that are grown for their fruit, tomato checked in at the highest coverage rate for local consumption at 111.3 %. Tomato was followed by pepper at 108.9 % and zucchini at 107.2 %.
In the subgroup of legume vegetables, horsebean was at 103.6 % coverage, peas were 102.9 % and green beans were at 100.3 %.
Looking at the fruit production, local production of figs covered 727.4 % of the local consumption. This excess consumption was used in exports. Hazelnut production covered 413.1 % of the local demand whereas 113.5% of the local consumption is met by the local consumption. At pistachios, this figure was 108.2%.
In citrus fruits, grapefruit local production met 209 % of the local demand whereas these figures were at 246.7 % for lemons, 209.7 % for mandarins and 145.1 % for oranges.
Under other fruits subgroup, local production for apricots covered 308.7 % of the local demand, for pomegranate this figure was 161 % whilst for grapes it was 141.6 %, for apples 135.9 % and for bananas only 58.3 %. Thus almost half of the local demand for bananas are fulfilled by the imported products.
Source: Dogruhaber