THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Turkey is known as a top producer and exporter of apricots, both fresh and dried, and Malatya province in eastern Anatolia is dubbed the apricot capital, accounting for 90 percent of the country’s apricot exports. It is one of the fruits Turkey is best known for in the world. Apricots are collected from about 8 million trees in Malatya. Meeting some 80 percent to 85 percent of the world’s dried apricot production alone, Malatya exported apricots to 112 countries in the latest export season with 99,461 tons of dried apricots from Aug. 1, 2018 to July 31 this year. Turkish apricots earned a coveted EU geographical indication in July 2017, a registration that helps unique products be protected, marketed and advertised.
It was the third Turkish product to get this EU designation after Gaziantep baklava, a rich, sweet pastry featured in many cuisines of the former Ottoman countries, and the Aegean fig.
Apricot exports generated $251 million in revenue during the export season, with most sales to the U.S., France, Germany, Brazil and Australia.
What’s more, exporters managed to carry out 3 kilograms of sales to Rwanda, 22 kilograms to Ghana and 28 kilograms to Angola, which drew attention in this season’s export figures.
On a country-by-country basis, the United States was the top market for Turkish dried apricot exports with 10,150 tons and $29.6 million, followed by France with 7,092 tons and $22.6 million, Germany with 5,496 tons and $17.7 million, Brazil with 4,028 tons and $11.6 million, Australia with 4,022 tons and $10.6 million, Russia with 5,340 tons and $10.1 million, and the United Kingdom with 3,353 tons and $9.3 million.
