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TÜRKTOB President Hacı Ömer Güler stated that they support the decision taken at the 4th Agriculture and Forestry Council to ‘boost the localisation and nationality rates in seeds’ and said, “It is of great importance to support R&D more.”
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Güler, President of Turkish Seed Growers’ Association (TÜRKTOB), made evaluations on the issues related to the seed sector in the final declaration of the 4th Agriculture and Forestry Council.
Pointing out that the announced decisions are oriented towards the needs of the sector, Güler said, “These decisions responded to the needs that the sector has been expressing for a long time.”
Noting that the decision to consider seed enterprises as industrial enterprises is an important breaking point, Güler stated that thanks to this regulation, seed companies can benefit from incentives for industry such as Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Development Organisation of Türkiye (KOSGEB) supports. “Our sector has been waiting for this regulation for years. We are a sector that produces not only agricultural but also industrial production,” Güler noted.
‘Certified seed increases the income of our farmers with its high yield potential’
Commenting on the decisions to ramp up the production and use of certified seeds and to prevent the sale of uncertified seeds, Güler said that these steps are critical in the fight against informality.
“According to TÜRKTOB data, seed production, which was 498 thousand tonnes in 2010, reached 1 million 303 thousand tonnes in 2024 and this increase means a growth of more than 160 percent in production in the last 14 years. Quality, disease-free and safe seed is only possible with the certified system. Unregistered production damages the sector and puts the producer at risk.”
Emphasising that certified seed is not only a production input but also a strategic cornerstone of agricultural development, Güler explained, “Certified seed increases the income of our farmers with its high yield potential, is under quality assurance, and has been scientifically tested to be free from diseases and pests. In this way, it provides confidence in production and the product is more preferred in the market. In addition, our farmers can benefit from many state supports thanks to certified seed. In other words, this is not only a seed, but also the guarantee of safe, planned and sustainable agriculture.”
Underlining that they carry out informative activities for farmers across the country, Güler indicated that these activities play an important role in increasing quality and yield.
‘We produce more than 90 percent of the seeds we need domestically’
Highlighting that they also support the decision to boost the domestic and nationality rates in seeds, Güler added, “Today, Türkiye has a sector with 9,637 registered varieties and an export-to-import ratio of 134 percent. We produce more than 90 percent of the seeds we need domestically. However, we still have a lot of work to do. Supporting R&D more, developing our own varieties and brands and boosting our effectiveness in the foreign market are of great importance.”
Güler also reminded that TÜRKTOB has been raising the issue of the development of seed health analysis environment and methods for years and concluded, “In order to meet the needs of the sector, it has become important to establish a National Seed and Plant Health Laboratory where research, development, plant breeding studies, analyses for certification in the context of authorisation, disease testing and other molecular identifications are carried out. We will continue to work in co-operation with the Ministry.”
