Maize harvesting continues in the Türkiye’s Southeastern province of Mardin’ Plain, which has an important place in grain production in the country.. The harvest of maize, which is planted as a second crop in the Mardin Plain covering Kızıltepe, Derik, Nusaybin and Artuklu districts of the province and described as “yellow gold” in the region, is being harvested with combine harvesters.
The maize, which is harvested and brought by trucks to Kızıltepe Grain Trade Centre and stored in warehouses, is sent to many parts of Türkiye from here.
“OUR 4 DISTRICTS MEET ONE THIRD OF THE COUNTRY’S CORN PRODUCTION”
Mehmet Şerif Öter, Head of Grain Trade Centre and also Kızıltepe Grain Traders’ Association, said that maize is planted as the second crop after wheat harvest in Mardin Plain and the production is carried out in 4 districts.
“According to TURKSTAT data, 800 thousand tonnes of yield was obtained last year. This is the amount of crop sold to the Turkish Grain Board (TMO) by farmers receiving support in the Farmer Registration System (ÇKS). However, in the free market, the yield amount reached 2 million tonnes. In 2022, nearly 2 million tonnes of production was obtained as second crop corn in Kızıltepe, Derik, Nusaybin and Artuklu districts and approximately 2 million tonnes of maize was harvested in 4 districts last year,” Öter said.
Pointing out that the total production of maize, which is the second crop of the country, is 6 million tonnes, Öter explained, “Therefore, our 4 districts meet one third of the country’s maize production. A yield between one tonne and one tonne 300 kilograms per decare is obtained. Compared to last year, there is a decrease of approximately 10-15 percent of the cultivation area. However, it is estimated that the yield will catch up with last year. We expect a yield of around 2 million tonnes in our 4 districts.”
“This valuable crop has become a basic need after wheat and is used in the production of oil, starch and semolina,” Öter added…