18.08.2021 The Fig Sector Meeting Was Held At Aydın Commodity Exchange
2021/2022 Season Fig Sector Meeting was held at Aydın Commodity Exchange.
In the meeting was held in Aydın Commodity Exchange Conference Hall, evaluations were made on many topics as to members’ problems getting into the sector and the issues they demanded. Producers, traders and exporters discussed the current state of the fig season at the meeting, where strategies to be followed to solve the problems were conveyed. Industry representatives, who decided to act jointly to solve all the issues raised during the meeting, exchanged ideas on the conduct of studies on the issues.
Aydın Commodity Exchange Board Member Kazım Günaydın, opening and moderating the meeting, emphasized the importance of food and agriculture once again due to the pandemic affecting our country and the world and evaluated fig production in 2020 by stating that producers, traders and operators are working the sustainability of food and agriculture.
Kazım Günaydın, Board Member of Aydın Commodity Exchange, said ‘’ During the fig production and harvest period, our producers, traders took the necessary measures and in spite of the pandemic 320 thousand tons of fig were produced in our country in 2020. Our province, which is a leader in fig production, meets 60 percent of our country’s production with 183 thousand tons. In our country, the yield of 2020 is 85,500 tons and 67 thousand tons of this figıre belongs to our province.’’
Stating that 80,439 tons of figs were traded on Aydın Commodity Exchange in 2020, Board Member of the Aydın Commodity Exchange, Kazım Günaydın stated that 47.000 tons of figs were exported in Aydın province, added also that $296 million was generated in fig exports in 2020 in our country, which ranks first in world fig production and exports.
‘’We Must Increase Our Sales’’
Kazım Günaydın, Board Member of Aydın Commodity Exchange, stated that it is necessary to grow sales and exports compared to increasing price of figs and figs in the regions and stated that they are ready to give all kinds of supports as Aydın Commodity Exchange in this matter. Mr. Günaydın said ‘’ We need to expand the market and uplift the figs.’’
Aydın Renewable Energy Sourced Cold Storage contibutes significantly to increasing International Market Share and Export Capacity.
Aydın Commodity Exchange Board Member Kazım Günaydın who has provided many information about Aydın Renewable Energy Sourced Cold Storage activity, which started operations as of November 2020, stated that the Cold Storage provides trade throughout the year while maintaining the beauty of figs, and that they are working on the growth of cold storage by stating that it contributes significantly to the increase of international market share and export capacity.
Mr. Günaydın wished that the sector meeting where the problems related to the fig sector would be evaluated and solution proposals to improve production and exports would be discussed, would be productive and added that the dry fig season would be fertile for all producers and traders.
The Fig Is A Strategic Product For Our Country’’
Yusuf Gabay, Board Member of Aegean Dried Fruits and Products Exporters Association, who stated that Dry Fig is important product for Aydın province and strategic one for our country added that figs grown in Aydın region meet approximately 65-70 percent of the world’s dry fig production and Turkish Figs have always been known as quality figs in the world. ‘’Dry Fig Exports were sold at very low levels of sales prices from the early 2000s compared to this time. Again, around 50-60 thousand tons of figs were sold. But the dollar yield was much lower for our country. All sector stakeholders kept this at 60 Thousand Tons, but we were able to raise export revenue to high levels for our country. As sector stakeholders, our next goal will be to increase the amount of 60 Thousand Tons to higher levels by using it in new planting areas and increase the input to our country and our income to our region. In this sense, as all sector stakeholders, we also carry out activities that improve the quality of dried figs. As exporters’ associations, we distribute rostrum to producers, harvest seedlings, weak-fig seedlings. We only do this in order to increase the quality and consumption of figs’’ he said.
Board Member of Aegean Dried Fruits and Products Exporters Association Yusuf Gabay, Board Chairman of Nazilli Commodity Exchange Nurettin Kırlıoğlu, T.R. Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Aydın Provincial Agriculture and Forestry, Directorate Plant Production and Plant Health Branch Manager Aydın Çelik attended as speakers to the session which was moderated by Board Member of Aydın Commodity Exchange, Kazım Günaydın .
The meeting, where the options of the sector representatives were taken and the requested issues were discussed, ended with the question and answer part.
