THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Dr. Mehmet Hasdemir, General Director of Plant Production of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, said that they have broken the mould in paddy.
Dr. Hasdemir pointed out that they are cultivating crops with the most appropriate irrigation method while bringing water to the soil and said:
“For example, we broke a game-changer in paddy. By growing paddy, which is the most consumed cereal in the world after corn and wheat, with drip irrigation, we reduced the water consumption per plant by up to 50 percent. In addition, we implemented a model that will produce more paddy with less water. With this project, which we started on 13 thousand decares in 12 provinces across Turkey, we reduced labour and soil cultivation by producing paddy in steep and uneven areas.”
Noting that approximately 3 million hectares of land is left fallow to store water every year, Dr. Hasdemir explained that when plants that consume less water are selected for production in these regions, they have a chance to produce in more areas each year.
Dr. Hasdemir also stated that 2.1 million decares of fallow land was narrowed last year, thus breaking a record and reaching 126 million tonnes in crop production.
“CLIMATE CHANGE MADE IT MANDATORY TO PRODUCE MORE WITH LESS WATER”
Emphasizing the importance of farming according to water, Hasdemir added:
“When we do agriculture based on water, we are looking for ways to increase our current production with less water, as well as to protect it. Because in the next 50 years, increasing temperature with climate change and evaporation will boost water losses. Now, we use drought-tolerant varieties that plan agriculture according to water, create planting patterns, choose plants and seeds. We also have a model that enables our farmers to plant. Here, the seed also stands out. Besides the plant type, there are also species that consume less water and provide more yield with less water.”
