THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Turkiye’s production of major oilseeds – sunflowerseeds, cottonseeds, and soybeans – in MY 2022/23 is
projected to rebound from the previous year as strong prices are expected to spur increased plantings.
Notwithstanding these forecasted increases in production, Turkiye is expected to continue its heavy
reliance on imported oilseeds and meal. Meal and oil consumption is expected to increase year-overyear as Turkiye’s economic situation stabilizes. Meanwhile, the government continues its efforts to
combat inflation, such as eliminating the import duty and reducing the VAT on sunflower oil, which is
an important household staple.
OILSEEDS…
In MY 2022/23, Turkiye’s total production of oilseeds – sunflowerseeds, cottonseeds, and soybeans – is projected to increase about eight percent year-over-year to nearly 3.4 MMT. This increase is predicted based on the expectation that farmers will increase oilseed plantings in response to anticipated higher profit margins compared to alternative crops.
Farmers are expected to still face higher input costs for seed, fertilizer, electricity, fuel, and crop protectants. While these higher costs will temper larger oilseed production gains in MY 2022/23, production is still expected to increase as oilseed prices are projected to remain strong enough to offset these higher input costs. Additionally, continued government support payments are expected to help incentivize production and take some of the edge off of higher input prices.
The government of Turkiye continues to support the production of 21 strategic crops, among which are the major oilseeds, under the “agricultural basins” concept. Various kinds of support are provided to famers growing these strategic crops within these geographic basins. As announced in the Official Gazette last November, overall support for CY2021 was nearly 25 billion Turkish Lira ($1.8 billion), similar to the previous year’s amount, but with relatively less purchasing power because of high inflation. CY2021 support payments will be paid out in CY2022. overall support for CY2021 was nearly 25 billion Turkish Lira ($1.8 billion), similar to the previous year’s amount. CY2021 support payments will be paid out in CY2022.
As part of this larger support program, the government pays a premium to farmers to incentivize oilseed
production and also offers price supports to offset fuel and fertilizer costs. The 2021 production
premiums increased for sunflowerseed and canola, while the incentives for the other oilseeds remained
unchanged. Canola saw the highest year-on-year increase with the premium going from 500 Turkish Lira (TL)/MT to 800 TL/MT. This increase is expected to trigger increased canola production.
The government also increased the 2020/21 fuel and fertilizer support payments in response to the higher costs for these inputs. Cottonseed producers now receive 760 TL/HA, up from 620 TL/HA the year prior. Sunflowerseed and soybean producers are receiving 370 TL/HA and 380 TL/HA, compared to 260 TL/HA the year before. Meanwhile, olive producers are getting 250 TL/HA, versus 150 TL/HA the previous year.
Despite the government’s effort to increase overall oilseed production, Turkiye remains dependent on oilseed imports since domestic production is insufficient to meet demand. Oilseed imports are forecast to rebound in MY 2022/23 based on the expectation that demand from the food and feed sector will remain strong, and economic conditions in the country will stabilize. In the final quarter of 2021, the Turkish Lira depreciated sharply against the USD, exacerbating the country’s rising inflation. Owing to these unstable conditions, oilseed imports in MY 2021/22 are expected to contract.
The government has instituted various measures to curb inflation, as described in our Grain & Feed
Update from January. Among these measures was a cut to the import tariffs on sunflowerseed and
sunflowerseed oil. The tariffs on other oilseeds remain unchanged.
Besides the major oilseeds produced in Turkiye, canola is becoming increasingly popular among farmers, especially in central Anatolia, where some growers are switching from sugar beets and corn to canola. Some of the rising popularity is linked to an increase in the canola production incentive, as described above. MY 2022/23 canola area harvested is projected to increase to 60,000 hectares, an increase of 25,000 hectares from the previous year. Canola production for this period is forecast at
160,000 metric tons, up year-over-year nearly 100,000 metric tons. Canola meal is used in feed and
canola oil is used for cooking and biodiesel.
Source: www.usda.com/fas
