Turkish citrus industry, which is expected to achieve a record production for the 2023-24 season as a result of favorable weather conditions, producer sales prices, which are below costs despite high yields, are dragging the sector into crisis.
While the average citrus crop is estimated to be 6.4 million tons only in Mersin, Adana and Hatay provinces, a record production expectation of around 7 million tons is expected in 2023 with the addition of other production provinces.
In the joint statement, Currently, it is reported that the yield of the 2023 season is 35 percent higher on average in our rival countries such as Spain, Egypt and Morocco. These countries are trying to trigger an increase in demand with 20-30 percent price discounts in the common markets in which we compete in order to melt their own stocks. This For this reason, the sales opportunities of our citrus producers have been restricted, and although we are approaching the middle of the season, we have thousands of farmers who have not made any sales yet. Our citrus producers, who already have to produce by borrowing from banks and markets due to the increase in production costs, are currently in great pessimism as they cannot sell their products.
In the statement, it was pointed out that while 1.9 million tons of the total citrus production was exported according to last year's figures, the remaining approximately 3 million tons was sufficient for domestic consumption. According to this year's projections, even if 2 million tons of our estimated production of 7 million tons were exported, 5 million tons would be consumed for domestic consumption. It was warned that a record citrus stock of tons will be created and that this excess branch, which cannot be consumed, will unfortunately be left to rot or cause the trees, which are our national wealth, to be uprooted along with their fruits.
