22.03.2021 Chairman of Aydın Commodity Exchange Fevzi Çondur and GEKA Secretary General Özgür Akdoğan also conducted investigations at Aydın Cold Storage Inc.
Fevzi Çondur, Board Chairman of Aydın Commodity Exchange and Özgür Akdoğan, Secretary General of GEKA, visited ''Aydın Renewable Energy Sourced Cold Storage Guided Project'' which was implemented with the support of GEKA, which carries out its activities in coordination with the Ministry of Industry and Technology and conducted inspections at the facility.
GEKA, which carries our its activities in coordination with the Ministry of Industry and Technology, supported Aydın Renewable Energy Sourced Cold Storage Guided Project, enabling the storage of food products requiring cold storage, especially dried figs, to a healty environment in Aydın. It was opened to the fact that Aydın, which is number one all around the world as fig good, became a dry base on a global conditions. Thus, the fig producer could be sold for 12 months, protecting it from the uncertainty brought on by price fluctuations. With the increase in the added value of dry figs with increased quality and marketing capacity, it will also be possible to improve exports in Aydın.
With the Cold Storage project completed by Aydın Commodity Exchange with the support of the South Aegean Development Agency; After harvesting fig fruit in Aydın, it will be stored in healthy and favorable conditions. Thus, the fig producer could be sold for 12 months, protecting it from the uncertainty brought on by price fluctuations. With the increase in added value of dry figs, quality and marketing capacity, it will be also possible to improve exports in Aydın.
Aydın Renewable Energy Cold Storage Warehouse, for which South Aegean Development Agency has granted a grant of 3 million Turkish Liras and a total project price of 5.5 million Turkish Liras, is built on 19,000 square meters of land with solar energy being used in the cold storage room with a capacity of 1,800 tons. 254 kwa-capacity photovoltaic solar panels installed in the plant meet some of the electricity consumption of the cold storage room. With Cold Storage project completed by Aydın Commodity Exchange with the support of the South Aegean Development Agency. In addition, the project includes a cold room, frozen room, shocking room, processing room and front cooling rooms. To dried figs, fresh fruits and vegetables, processed food products, meat and aquaculture that require freezing storage could be stored under favorable conditions at Renewable Energy Source Cold Storage, where the first product acceptance took place in last January. Thus, the enlightened manufacturer and trader are protected from the uncertainty caused by price fluctuations in the market. That will make Aydın, which is number one in the world especially in fig production, a base of dried figs on a global scale. Aydın's export capacity is expected to increase with its cold storage.
GEKA Secretary General and Chairman of Aydın Commodity Exchange Fevzi Çondur, who conducted inspections at the Cold Storage, where groundbreaking ceremony was held last year and where the first product purchase took place in late 2020, made statements about about the project.
In a statement, GEKA Secretary General Özgür Akdoğan expressed that '' We have visited Aydın Renewable Energy Source Cold Storage Project, which is supported by GEKA, which operates under the coordination of the Ministry of Industry and Technology and General Directorate of Development Agencies. This project is really important one for Aydın, a leader in he production of agricultural products in Turkey and worldwide. We believe that the project will bring great benefits to Aydın in terms of increasing the quality, competitiveness and export capacity of agricultural products, especially figs. Since 2010, our agency has been working to increase added value in agricultural products and ensure organization and efficiency. We have increased these efforts in recent years. Because, agriculture is an important issue for us in Aydın. We believe that this project will greatly contribute to the marketing of figs and to increase of export capacity in Aydın. In this sense, I would like to thank Aydın Commodity Exchange and the project partners on behalf of our Agency's Board of Directors for their smooth running of such a project on time.''
GEKA Secretary General Özgür Akdoğan underlined that the project is important and unique as it provides energy for renewable energy. He said the facility could provide electricity largely through solar energy panels. Akdoğan underscored that the project overlaps with Development Agencies' theme of ''Resource Efficiency'' in 2021 within the scope of the ''Resource Efficiency'' theme of 2021, the Agency will carry out various activities in the region. ''Productivity and consumption has been our main motto. We believe that the project will provide exemplary resource efficiency. We also foresee that similar facilities could be built in our region and Turkey based on the result of this facility. Naturally, our Agency will continue to support similar oriented projects aimed at increasing the competitiveness of various agricultural products. On behalf of the Ministry, General Directorate, Board of Directors and Agency, I would like to thank the applicant Aydın Commodity Exchange and its partners and wish our region and the public good luck with our project.''
Fevzi Çondur, Board Chairman of Aydın Commodity Exchange, stated that '' the operation of Cold Storage facility operated by Aydın Commodity Exchange, Aydın Cold Storage Inc., which was completed by Aydın Commodity Exchange with the support of South Aegean Development Agency (GEKA), will add value to the agricultural products of Aydın Province. Aydın Commodity Exchange Aydın Cold Storage Inc., which we started by laying the foundation in a month and completed at the end of the 9th months, is a cold storage sourced from renewable energy. We have minimized the energy costs, which are the biggest expense with renewable energy in the cold storage with a closed area capacity of 1,800 square meters. ''
Stating that Aydın province is one of the leading provinces of our country in terms of the production of agricultural products, epecially during periods of high supply of dried figs, which are the first in the world production, price fluctuations occured in the market, that cold storage was needed in line with the demands from members in terms of minimizing and resetting problems in terms of storage conditions and quality, as a result of which, with the support of GEKA, Aydın Commodity Exchange Aydın Cold Storage Inc. they've activated it.
Dried figs, improving storage conditions for strawberries and other fresh fruits and vegetables, which we are second line in Turkey in terms of production, Mr. Çondur stated that they are trying to contribute to the economy of Aydın by having the use of Cold Storage facilities at the most economical means for the well-known manufacturers and members of Aydın Commodity Exchange. Stating that '' I would like to extend my appreciate to Aydın Merchants and the members of Parliament, GEKA and GEKA Board of Directors for their efforts.''
