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Press release…
The 2023/24 season of seedless dried grape (raisins), one of the traditional export products in which Türkiye is the world leader in production and exports, was completed with exports of 490 million dollars with an increase of 11 percent compared to the previous season.
The 64th International Conference of Seedless Dried Grape Producing Countries was held on 24 October 2024 in Paris, France. The meeting was attended by 27 representatives from seedless raisin producing countries such as Australia, Chile, Greece, South Africa, Türkiye and the United States of America.
The next conference will be held in Cape Town on 15-17 November 2025.
Murat Gören, Commercial Counsellor at the Embassy of Türkiye in Paris, delivered a speech emphasising the importance of international cooperation and sustainability in the dried grapes (Sultana raisin) sector.
Mark King from Australia was elected President of the Conference, while Osman Öz from Türkiye was appointed Vice President and Ece Tırkaz was appointed secretary.
At the meeting, Türkiye declared that with a yield of 236,000 tonnes, it would alone produce 20 percent of the world’s seedless raisin yield of 1 million 157,000 tonnes.
The USA ranks second with 202 thousand 565 tonnes of production, while China ranks third with 185 thousand tonnes of seedless raisins. India 145 thousand tonnes, Iran 160 thousand tonnes, South Africa 73 thousand 500 tonnes, Chile 56 thousand tonnes, Argentina 48 thousand 400 tonnes, Uzbekistan 40 thousand tonnes, Australia 10 thousand 725 tonnes of raisin production.
While seedless raisin producing countries aim to export 598,791 tonnes of raisins worldwide in 2024, Türkiye aims to get a 30 percent share of world exports with 176,000 tonnes of raisin exports.
Osman Öz, Chair of the Turkish Dried Fruits and Products Exporters’ Associations Sector Board, announced that the world dried fruit market is estimated to be around 11 billion dollars. “The Turkish raisin sector has an important share in the world dried fruit market with a market share of approximately 25 percent. At the 64th International Conference of Seedless Raisin Producing Countries, we had the opportunity to have a detailed consultation with representatives from Australia, Chile, Greece, South Africa and the United States, which will shape the future of our industry,” Öz said.
On the other hand, Mehmet Ali Işık, Chair of Aegean Dried Fruits and Products Exporters’ Association, stated that the producer countries evaluated the 2024/25 season and made presentations on the yield, domestic consumption and export expectations for 2024/25.
Pointing out thats seedless raisin supply soared by 6.14% compared to the 2023 crop, Işık added, “There is a significant decrease of 49% in beginning stocks. Despite this reduction in stocks, we anticipate that the overall increase in production will allow global grape supply to meet growing demand. Golden grape production was up by only 1%, while total stocks were down by 14% due to lower carryover stocks. Total supply remained unchanged. Despite the increase in Greece’s currant production, the total supply of currants is expected to decrease by 8% due to lower beginning stocks.”
