TURKEY
Greenhouses in Demre, Antalya province, Turkey.
The protected area in Turkey has burgeoned in the previous decade, growing by around 52 percent, with increases in production volumes for both vegetables and fruit. In the case of fruit, within the last decade some fruits, such as apricot, plums and blueberry, have been cultivated under protection and included in the figures for the first time. This increase in production has required inputs. The number of companies manufacturing or supplying biological inputs and water-soluble fertilizers numbers at least 310, according to New AG International data. In this country report, we see that apples and lemons are becoming significant exports, with one of the upcoming crops being rocket. With so much production occurring in protected horticulture, contributor Professor Hasan Yilmaz of Isparta University of Applied Sciences provides an overview of biocontrol in the greenhouse sector.
The protected area in Turkey has burgeoned in the previous decade, growing by around 52 percent, with increases in production volumes for both vegetables and fruit. One of the drivers has been population growth. At 85 million, Turkey’s population has been growing steadily for several decades. In 1970, the population was 35 million, giving an average annual growth rate of 1.5 percent since 1990. Population projection by Our World in Data has
Turkey’s population reaching 97 million by 2056, with it falling back to around 86 million by the end of the century.
Protected Area The protected area for horticulture has seen a 52 percent growth in the years 2010-2021 from 56,381 hectares (ha) to 85,460 ha, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT). The data is broken down into glass greenhouses, plastic greenhouses, high tunnels and low tunnels. In 2021, glass greenhouses accounted for nine percent of the area, plastic greenhouses 54 percent, high tunnels 12 percent and low tunnels 25 percent. The sector with the largest growth in the period 2010-2021 were plastic greenhouses, doubling from 23,000 ha to 46,000 ha. High and low tunnels grew by 24 percent each in the period.
Data for vegetable and fruit production for land under protective cover was also available. The volume of vegetables grown has increased 60 percent between 2010-2021, from 5.5 million tonnes (t) to 8.8 million t. The production of bell peppers under protective cover has more than doubled in this period, reaching 850,000 t in 2021. The tomato volume under protective cover has increased by 54 percent to 4.4 million t. Melon has seen a 94 percent increase, from 111,000 t to 216,000 t. Watermelon has grown by a more modest 18 percent, from 694,000 t to 818,000 t. Onions (green and spring onion) have undergone a 254 percent increase to 8,300 t. Three different types of lettuce have also seen increases over the decade of more than 100 percent: Cos has increased by 140 percent to 39,000 t; loose leaf 236 percent to 89,000 t; and iceberg 260 percent to 19,000 t.
Rocketing rocket Rocket has increased in production from 1,100 t to 20,000 t in this 11-year period. Purslane has grown from 2,900 t to 10,100 t, an increase of 254 percent. Parsley growing has increased from around 430 t in 2010 to 8,000 t in 2021. Mint has also achieved a huge jump from 130 t to 761 t.
Fruit boost The growth in fruit production has been even greater than for vegetables. Between 2010-2021, the volume of fruit grown under protection increased from 272,000 t to 978,000 t, an increase of 260 percent. The biggest increases in volume were strawberries and banana. In this period, the volume for strawberries increased from 122,000 t to 253,000 t, an increase of 107 percent. For banana, the volume increased from 150,000 t to 723,000 t in the 11-year period. Grapes under protection increased from 350 t to 1,200 t. Protected production for apricots increased from 2012 from one t to 479 t. There were some new additions – apricots were listed under protected crops in 2012 for the first time, with 479 t in 2021. Production of peaches under the category of protected area was introduced in 2013 and has very small volumes – only 10 t recorded for 2021; plums first listed 2016 and with 366 t in 2021, and blueberry with 33 t, listed for the first time in 2021.
Cereals Of the country’s 38 million ha of utilized agricultural land, around 16 million ha are sown for cereals and other crop products. In 2021, Turkey produced around 17.7 million t of wheat from 6.7 million ha. The country is a net importer of wheat to meet its consumption, bringing in eight million t in the 2020-21 season (USDA) while exporting around six million t. Most of the imported wheat comes from Russia. Unlike maize and raw cotton, wheat yields have not really grown over the past decades. This does not seem to have hindered the country developing its pasta industry and becoming the world’s second largest exporter of macaroni.
Sunflower production has also increased in the last 20 years, from 650,000 t to around 2.4 million t in 2021. The country produces around 600,000 t of milled rice per year, and imports around 500,000 t to meet its consumption. The harvested barley area is around 3.8 million ha, with production of 7-8 million t. Turkey will import some volumes, but will only export a very limited quantity. The major growing regions are Konya, Ankara and Şanliurfa, according to the USDA (see map for location).
Regions of Turkey
Selection of Turkey’s 81 provinces by production.
Fruit production Turkey is among the largest apple producers in Europe. Turkey’s apple production has increased in the last seven years or so, with 1.7 million t in 2015 and reaching 4.5 million t by 2021. Three provinces are roughly responsible for 50 percent of the commercially grown apples – Isparta, Karaman and Nigde. The USDA states Karaman is becoming more important for export business.
Grapes Turkey has significant grape production, mainly for table and dried products, although the country does have wine production. Turkey is the leading exporter of dried grapes. According to the OIV, for 2018 the breakdown was 56 percent table, 41 percent dried and three percent wine. In overall tonnage, TURKSTAT reported 3.7 million t in 2021. The 10-year average between 2011-2021 is four million t. The total grape area fell slightly between 2014-2018 from around 500,000 ha to 448,000 ha in 2018. (OIV). The largest wine producing area of Turkey is the Aegean wine region near the city of Izmir. Eastern Anatolia, Marmara and Southern Anatolia are also important wine regions.
Citrus production The total citrus area is around 300,000 ha, with total citrus production of around three million t. One report on citrus production notes there are roughly three regions, estimating 75 percent of production is on the Cukurova Plain near the city of Adana. Another 15 percent is around Antalya, and the third region is Izmir. Turkey produced around 1.3 million t of oranges in 2020-21, according to USDA FAS, which accounted for about one-third of Turkey’s total citrus production. Domestic consumption is around 1.5 million t, and the country exports some volumes to nearby markets, such as Russia, Iraq and Ukraine. Turkey meets its consumption through imports, and in 2021-22 is expected to import 265,000 t.
Turkey mainly produces the Washington Navel variety of orange. Around 85 percent are produced in the Mediterranean region, with the remainder in the Aegean region. The other main varieties are Valencias, and Shamouti, also known as Jaffa orange. USDA’s FAS service is estimating 1.82 million t for the 2021-22 season due to favourable rainy conditions. Eighty-five percent of oranges are produced in the Mediterranean region of Turkey, while the remaining 15 percent are produced in the Aegean region, according to FAS.
Mandarins account for around 25 percent of the citrus volume, with lemons at 20 percent, and the remainder being grapefruit and other miscellaneous citrus. Lemon production is around 1.5 million t in 2021, according to TURKSTAT, an increase on 2020 (see Table 3). Turkey exports roughly half of its lemon production. The USDA FAS states the lemon orchard area has increased in recent years due to increased profitability compared to other citrus fruits. Turkey tends to export about half of its lemon production. FAS estimates domestic consumption of lemons at 578,000 t for 2021-22. The agency notes that COVID restrictions on tourism and restaurants reduced lemon consumption to around 433,000 t.
Oranges account for around 30 percent of Turkey’s citrus production.
Tea production Turkey is the fifth largest producer of tea, according to FAO 2018, with dried tea of 270,000 t. TURKSTAT data shows production at around 1.4 million t of green leaf tea recorded for 2021. An industry source in the tea industry confirmed to New AG International that a conversion rate from the leaf to the dried production is a ratio of around 0.25. Turkey’s tea production is located on the eastern Black Sea coast in the north of the country. The dominant tea growing region is Rize, while others include Trabzon, Artvin, Giresun and Ordu.
The green leaves will tend to be used to make black tea, which is fully oxidized, and the more widely drunk variety of tea. A smaller quantity of green leaves in Turkey do not undergo the oxidation process and used to make green tea. According to one academic paper: “The biggest advantage of Turkish tea sector is that pesticides are not used for its cultivation. The winter conditions decrease pests by natural means as it snows in Rize province, situated in the northeast of Turkey.” (Yurteri et al.) There is ongoing research into the utilization of plant growth-promoting bacteria in organic tea production, conducted by Çakmakçı et al., (2012, 2013, 2016), according to the above reference.
Turkey’s tea production is located on the eastern Black Sea coast in the north of the country.
Nut production Turkey is the number one hazelnut producer in the world, supplying 70-75 percent of the global market. Hazelnuts are grown in 14 provinces having a temperate maritime climate by the Black Sea, on slopes and in shallow soils. In 2015, a government regulation enabled production to be enlarged to two more provinces (Bolu and Tokat – see map). The total planting area is around 700,000 ha. Production volumes vary between 500,000 and 800,000 t. TURKSTAT data shows production levels can vary – see Chart 2. Volumes can swing by 300,000 t (2008). Fluctuation in annual production can be caused by late spring frosts, and this in turn can create volatility in hazelnut pricing in domestic and international markets (Erdogan). The same source estimated that 15-20 percent of the crop is consumed domestically, with the bulk of the crop exported.
Olives The olive has been an important crop for millennia in Turkey. South-east Anatolia is known to be the
cradle and gene centre of the olive, according to the International Olive Council. In the west of the country, the provinces of Aydin, Izmir, Mugla, Balikesir, Bursa, Manisa, Canakkale. Growing provinces lie along the south of the country, in central Anatolia and the southeast. Turkey has native varieties, with Edremit predominant in the north and Memecik in the south. Other crops grown in Turkey – see Table 3
Nutrient consumption Turkey has a number of fertilizer producers, and is a large importer of raw materials. The trace element that has the world’s largest reserves is boron, and there are many suppliers that incorporate this element into their fertilizer formulations.
Turkey is a large importer of urea – although much of the quantity is used for glue manufacture as part of Turkey’s large chipboard manufacturing industry. In terms of nutrient consumption, data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry for 2021 shows nitrogen consumption in nutrient tonnes as 8.5 million t of nitrogen, 3.7 million t of P2O5, and 300,000 t K2O. Usage of nitrogen has increased by 26 percent between 2009-2021, and a more modest increase of nine percent for P2O5 across the same period.
Biocontrol In its December 2021 report, the USDA’s FAS said the Mediterranean fruit fly issue remained “the greatest concern among producers and exporters, as the pest is the reason for many of the rejections for Turkish lemons at European Union and Russian ports.” The report went on to say that Turkey had started to try to combat the Mediterranean fruit fly by biological methods and plot studies. For more on the use of biocontrol in greenhouses, see our contribution by Professor Yılmaz, Isparta University of Applied Sciences.
Hazelnut orchard in north of Turkey in Ordu province, bordering Black Sea.
Hasan Yılmaz, PhD., Professor of Agricultural Economics, Isparta University of Applied Sciences
Greenhouse production is an important part of the agricultural sector and crop production in Turkey and continues to show a promising pace of development. Greenhouse vegetable production is a very important economic venture in Turkey. It contributes significantly to income, employment and export opportunities.
The total greenhouse vegetable production realized was 8.7 million tons cultivated on 78.651 hectares (ha) of land in 2021. Tomatoes and pepper production dominate in the total greenhouse vegetable production. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT), about 50.54 percent and 12.96 percent of the total greenhouse vegetable produced in Turkey were tomatoes and pepper, respectively. Antalya province is one of the most important crop production areas, and the centre of greenhouse production in Turkey, with 38.26 percent of the total greenhouse production area in Turkey (TURKSTAT, 2022).
Greenhouse production is an intensive production method because it reduces the dependence of agricultural production on natural conditions with the use of intensive technology (Yılmaz, 2014).
Greenhouse production is increasing in Turkey as well as in the rest of the world, due to the increase in consumers' demand for out-of-season food and the relative income advantage for producers.
Greenhouse agriculture is supported all over the world for reasons such as the desire of countries to ensure food security and food security. However, the intensive use of chemical inputs in greenhouse agriculture has reached levels that threaten the environment and human health, and the increasing concerns about the environment, food safety and human health have led governments to take some measures (Yilmaz and Tanc, 2019).
Technologies used in greenhouse production and environmentally friendly agroecological practices are supported by governments, especially in developed countries. In developed countries, the issue of food safety is handled as a part of preventive health policy and given special importance (Wezel et al., 2014; Ciacciaet al., 2019).
Greenhouse production area and amount are constantly increasing in Turkey. It provides an important agricultural product export income for Turkey, contributes to food security, and many farmers produce greenhouses, etc. For reasons, greenhouse production is supported to increase the level of technology use and environmentally friendly agroecological practices. Greenhouse production in Turkey is given special importance due to the fact that greenhouse products are an important export product and food safety problems are experienced, and support policies are implemented by the government with different means for different purposes (Yilmaz, 2021).
Biological control practices in greenhouse production are a solution to the challenge of sustainable and safe food production. Meeting food safety requirements using current agricultural production techniques cannot be achieved. For this reason, biological control is recommended as a solution to the challenge of sustainable food production with less or no pesticide residues and lower use of inputs (Yılmaz and Tanç, 2019).
Although biological control studies in Turkey date back to the 1950s, the Biological Control Research Station
was first established in Antalya in 1965. Today, many “biological control research institutes” and “biological control laboratories” have been established, and production and research studies are carried out in these laboratories. Biological control application initially began by trials carried out on 10 ha of pepper grown at the greenhouse in 2002 in Antalya province of Turkey (Topakcı and Kececi, 2017). Residue problems, especially in the export of fresh fruits and vegetables, have increased the interest in biological control in Turkey (MAF, 2022a).
Social sensitivities about environment, safe food, public health and biodiversity, which have increased especially after 2010 in Turkey, conscious producers and public authorities have been important actors in the management of the process related to biological control practices. Export problems caused by pesticide residues, health concerns about fresh fruit and vegetables consumed in public due to increasing welfare, harmonization studies in food safety legislation in the European Union harmonization process and possible problems that may arise from plant production and food consumption during the biosafety law process have been discussed intensively.
In order to reduce the use of pesticides in the fight against harmful organisms in plant production in Turkey, to prevent residues, to protect the ecosystem and to ensure sustainable production, support payments are made to producers who apply biological and biotechnical control methods. In 2010, for the first time in Turkey, in order to reduce the use of pesticide in greenhouse crop production and to produce safe food, support was given to
Since the Turkish greenhouse sector produces for export, it is necessary to produce safe food in the quality demanded by export markets.
producers engaged in biological and biotechnical control in greenhouse crop production. Amount of biological and biotechnical control support gave to farmers by the government in Turkey is presented in Table 1. Biological and biotechnical control support is provided by the state to farmers for greenhouse and open field production. Biological and biotechnical control support for greenhouse production is 6.350 TL/ha as a package and 1.700 TL/ha for open field production. In addition, farmers who use bumblebees for pollination in greenhouse production are supported given 60 TL per colony.
Table 1. Amount of biological and biotechnical control support in Turkey
Source: MAF, 2021. *1US dollar was equal to 8,86 Turkish Lira as at 2021.
In 2010, biological and biotechnical control support was provided to 615 farmers for an area of 529.4 ha. In 2021, the number of farmers receiving biological and biotechnical control support increased by 13.11 times and reached 8,064 farmers. In the same period, the amount of land on which biological and biotechnical control was applied increased approximately 43.57 times and reached 23,065.9 ha (MAF, 2022b). These figures reflect only those farmers who can receive support. Considering that some farmers cannot receive support because they are not registered in the farmer registration system for different reasons, it can be said that the number of farmers applying biological and biotechnical control is higher.
Since the Turkish greenhouse sector produces for export, it is necessary to produce safe food in the quality demanded by export markets. The most problematic area in reliable food production is the fresh fruit and vegetable sector. The production of fresh fruits and vegetables without pesticide residues is extremely difficult, especially due to many diseases and pests that cause economic losses in these products. Biological control studies are very important for Turkey for the reasons stated (MAF, 2022a).
There are many fresh fruits and vegetables exported by Turkey. It is possible to foresee that Turkey's fresh fruit and vegetable exports will increase gradually in the future and there will be important developments in the field of biological control in order to meet the increasing safe food demand. Adequate R&D studies should be carried out in the field of biological control for Turkey and at the same time, the private sector should be encouraged to invest in this area for production. Increasing awareness of consumers about safe food and environmental health necessitates the development and use of environmentally friendly methods in agricultural production. For this reason, more importance should be given to research, education and extension studies for the widespread use of by farmers biological and biotechnical control methods.
Ciaccia, C., Ceglie, F. G., Burgio, G., Madžarić, S., Testani, E., Muzzi, E., & Tittarelli, F. (2019). Impact of Agroecological Practices on Greenhouse Vegetable Production: Comparison among Organic Production Systems. Agronomy, 9(7), 372. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy9070372 MAF, 2022a. Biological Control from Theory to Practice (Teoriden Pratiğe Biyolojik Mücadele). (Book). Republic Of Turkey Ministry Of Agriculture And Forestry. https://arastirma.tarimorman.gov.tr/bmae/Belgeler/Kitap/biyolojik-mucadele-kitabi.pdf MAF, 2022b. Data from the Republic of Turkey Ministry Of Agriculture And Forestry. Biological/Biotechnical Control Supports 2010-2021. Topakci, N., Keçeci, M. (2017). The development of greenhouse biological control application in Turkey: From research to practice the example of Antalya. Turkish Journal of Biological Control. 8 (2), 161-174. Retrieved from http://dergipark.org.tr/tbmd/ issue/35810/402136. TURKSTAT, 2022. Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT) https://biruni.tuik.gov.tr/medas/?locale=trYılmaz, H. (2014). An Analysis on Factors Influencing Government Supported Bumble Bees Use as Pollinators by Greenhouse Producers in the Mediterranean Coastal Region of Turkey. Acta Scientiarum Polonorum – Hortorum Cultus. 2014, 13(6): 59-70. Yılmaz, H. & Tanç, Z. A. (2019). Biological Control in Pest Management in Turkey: Comparison of the Attributes of Participant and Non-Participant Greenhouse Farmers in Government-Subsidized Biological Control Practices. Future of Food: Journal on Food, Agriculture and Society, 7(2), Nr-105. DOI:10.17170/kobra-20190709594 Yilmaz, H. (2021). Economic and Toxicological Aspects of Pesticide Management Practices: Empirical Evidence from Turkey. International Letters of Natural Sciences (81), 23-30. Wezel, A., Casagrande, M., Celette, F., Vian, J. F., Ferrer, A. & Peigné, J. (2014). Agroecological Practices for Sustainable Agriculture: A Review. Agron. Sustain. Dev. 34:1–20. Doi 10.1007/s13593-013-0180-7. ●
Greenhouse production area and amount are constantly increasing in Turkey.
The company was established in Istanbul in 1987 and moved its headquarters to Antalya in 2000. In the same year, Doktor Tarsa has engaged in a joint venture agreement by 50 % with SQM, one of the world's leading companies in the field of fertilizers. This partnership continued for almost 20 years until DRT’s sister company Tasaco Tarım purchases all shares of SQM. As a result DRT became a 100% domestic capital company.
DRT defines itself as Doktor Tarsa Group of companies with the investments it has made throughout its business life for more than 35 years, actually serves the world’s agricultural fields in different branches of agriculture with almost its 400 personnel most of whom are agricultural engineers. The company established on a total 55,000 m2 of land of which is equal to 23,000 m2 as a covered area and the rest 32,000 m2 considered as an opened area. Besides there are two warehouses located in İzmir and Mersin.
The annual production capacity is around 50,000 MT from NPK fertilizers produced by two production lines in one shift. With the 12,000 MT production capacity from liquid fertilizers; 29,000 MT from fertilizer contained inhibitors and 13,000 MT from granular fertilizers production as well, the total production capacity is going to be equal to 104,000 MT. In order to ensure the quality standards at every stage of production process and keeping the quality in a high standard, Doktor Tarsa established its fully equipped
laboratory so called Doktolab in April 2005. By maintaining this high quality, in 2017 ’’water soluble powder NPK’’ market share reached 45% in Turkey building on what was around 25% in 2001. Thanks to the DRT’s 5 production plants in 5 different countries,
including warehouses and operational offices in different locations which equal to 10 facilities in total and all of the aforementioned production provides agricultural services to the more than 70 countries around the world. Doktor Tarsa A.Ş. adopted its identity by raising its unique slogan " a Brand Approved by the Plants". ●
Turkish company ForFarming develops solutions for food producers by combining IoT, Cloud, machine learning, and blockchain technologies with modern farming methods.
Established in 2019, ForFarming is a hardware company that builds indoor and vertical farming systems. After the COVID pandemic, the company moved away from hardware and focused on SaaS. After focusing on SaaS, Forfarming has launched three products, Farmio, Trusty, Farmi.
Farmio is an AI-supported automated monitoring and control system for optimal environmental conditions; Farmi is the AI-powered digital assistant that diagnoses plant diseases and provides treatment and custom growth recipes; and Trusty is a B2B blockchain-enabled supply chain transparency & traceability solution. As a SaaS provider, we have reached over 5000 users, 60% of which are daily active users, from 4 countries in 1 month. Our goal is to help more producers increase yield and efficiency by expanding our user base globally. According to information obtained from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Turkey ranks 4th in the world and 2nd in Europe in terms of greenhouse assets. Vertical, hydroponic, aquaponic farming systems have recently started to attract more attention in the country. While Antalya ranks first in production with soilless agriculture, Mersin, İzmir, Manisa, and Afyonkarahisar are among the areas where soilless greenhouses and indoor farms are concentrated. ●
