2020-2021 Food Sector Assessment

2020 was a difficult and unpredictable year for the entire world. When the first case of COVID-19 was announced in Turkey on 11 March 2020, everyone's life changed dramatically. At Aromsa, we immediately took precautions, making masks and social distancing mandatory. We partially shifted to working from home. From that day on, we began publishing information and taking measures at the company. We frequently informed employees about what needed to be done to prevent misinformation and panic, and to protect ourselves and our families against COVID-19. We also published rules that needed to be observed in our private lives outside of work and explained the importance of adhering to these rules. From the beginning, we grasped the seriousness of the situation and constantly reminded everyone. We implemented social distancing rules in laboratories and offices. To prevent congestion in dining halls, we organized teams to have meals at different time intervals and rearranged seating according to new rules. We doubled the number of shuttle services to reduce the number of personnel in vehicles. To ensure business continuity, we reviewed and applied the employee backup system in the most efficient manner. We strengthened our existing IT infrastructure for working from home. To respond completely and timely to increased customer demands during the pandemic, we reinforced our existing systems and delivered flawless service. We came to understand how correct a decision digitalization in production had been. Our colleagues working in production were already the most protected, as they worked with masks and protective clothing. In short, social distancing, mask use, protective clothing and hygiene are the measures I can mention that we took. As a food company, hygiene is one of the issues we paid the most attention to. Thanks to necessary information and close monitoring of employees, we ensured that these rules were applied completely and without exception by everyone. As I mentioned earlier, the food sector provided uninterrupted service during this period. After the healthcare sector, which worked with great dedication and sacrifice, food workers providing continuous service also had a very busy 2020. The food sector worked uninterrupted to ensure reliable and continuous food supply. Our Research and Development center and production facilities operated continuously to ensure that existing products and innovations were always on the shelves. When people rushed to markets at the beginning of the pandemic and shelves emptied, it showed what poor consequences disruptions in food supply could cause. Fortunately, such an event did not happen again. To summarize, 2020 was very busy for Aromsa, like the entire food sector. Continuous production, research and development, quality and implementation work continued thanks to our dedicated colleagues. In addition, through the precautions we took from day one, the information we provided and the strict rules we implemented, we protected and continue to protect our employees and all stakeholders. I do not think 2021 will be very different from 2020. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, consumer demand for packaged products with longer shelf lives and essential food products increased; we expect this demand to continue. However, due to health concerns, consumers turned to products that strengthen the immune system. Products enriched with vitamins and minerals, those with increased protein content and fermented products came to the fore. As time spent outdoors was restricted and working from home increased, in this period when life was confined to homes, demand for snack products also increased. As a result of the values that began to reshape in 2020, the feeling of "we will get through this together" that formed in all of us increased consumer interest in local products. We are in a battle against COVID-19 that the entire world is fighting. Although vaccinating the majority of the population reduces the risk somewhat, returning to complete normalcy will take much longer. During this process, we will continue to apply the precautions we started taking last year. We will continue to pay attention to mask use, social distancing and hygiene. During this period, we will continue to work with our health as our priority. We must try to get through this difficult test with mobilization and sacrifice as the entire world. We should live by appreciating and supporting healthcare workers as we understand their value more and more. By remembering that science is the only way out, we should remind ourselves and those around us how important vaccination, medication and treatment are. For the wheel not to stop, we as the food sector also need to work continuously. Without abandoning precautions, with the awareness that this is a temporary process, we need to work and serve, and contribute to mobilization to get through this battle. During the restrictions implemented in this period, we observed how nature recovered, how air and water were cleaned. We realized how important it is for sustainable consumption and living, both for nature and for humans. Accepting this situation as a learning experience, in the coming period, in line with the changing world and living conditions, we must all fulfill the responsibilities that fall to us in the field of sustainability.

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Due to the pandemic, we had a very busy year at GGD. Changes in food consumption dynamics caused very serious changes in food production and logistics. While on one hand we focused on social media communication with consumers and tried to deliver correct messages to them, on the other hand we carefully prepared separate COVID-19 Combat and Hygiene Guides for the food production sector, retail and logistics sectors, and restaurants, and shared them with a very large user base. We carried out these works with very intensive participation from our members, professional non-governmental organizations and Ministries. The pandemic showed us once more the importance of solidarity and gave us the opportunity to experience and see what a beautiful force is born from unity. Although it is known that COVID-19 does not pass through food, due to the pandemic, a serious hygiene perception and awareness developed in society. Consumers now began to realize much better why packaged foods are reliable. We foresee that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic will continue through the end of 2021, albeit at a decreasing rate. We can only reunite with complete normalization in 2022, unfortunately. However, partial normalization has begun and will continue with ups and downs. However, in the meantime, everyone's risk perception has changed seriously. Even if the pandemic ends physically, its psychological effects may last much longer. For this reason, as GGD, together with Etüder, we plan to fully implement our "TZG – Supply Chain Trust" project in 2021, which we began working on in 2020 to refresh consumer confidence. This project is very important for the restoration of consumer confidence and transparency. Consumers want reliable food and transparency. Through this project, consumers will have the opportunity to see which manufacturers produced the food they consume and where it was produced by scanning QR codes with their smartphones at the restaurants they visit. Only companies certified to operate according to international food safety standards can be part of this system. In other words, when a consumer goes to a restaurant included in the TZG system, they will both transparently learn the origin of the raw materials used and be assured of their safety. I wish you all healthy days and successful endeavors on this occasion.

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In this work where the food sector's evaluation during 2020 and the pandemic process, as well as expectations and forecasts for 2021 will be evaluated by leading names in our sector, according to United Nations (UN) records, humanity is facing the most widespread crisis since World War II. It is impossible to predict when the global health problem that started in 2020 will end. COVID-19 reminded us once again how indispensable food is to humanity. The entire world rediscovered agriculture alongside the global COVID-19 epidemic. During the pandemic period, it became clear that seed, soil and water resources that would make sustainable living possible are vitally important, and continuous food supply is needed more than ever. The COVID-19 that deeply shook the entire world brought to the fore the difficulties that could be experienced in accessing safe food. In the face of this situation, food security began to be questioned and the global food system began to be discussed. It became even more apparent that structural reforms in agriculture became essential with COVID-19. During this challenging time, the protection and sustainable management of natural resources became even more important for global food security. In the COVID-19 outbreak, the importance of self-sufficiency in food supply security, maintaining security stocks, brand reliability and the logistics sector became clear. In a globalizing world, the agenda included governments establishing security stocks in basic food products, increasing local production and reducing imports. It was concluded that demand for food products could not be met through imports but only by producing them. India, which realizes 20 percent of global legume demand, began implementing its "Self-Sufficiency" policy. As long as production increases in legume products are achieved, import volumes will decrease in the coming years, and consequently, the course of global legume trade will change. Russia has a very important place in Turkey's agricultural and food foreign trade. It is first in agricultural and food imports and third in exports. A country's ability to meet its domestic consumption in agricultural production and food is as important as national security. Turkey is fortunate in this regard as it is located in a climate zone where it can produce many foods. Particularly, our country's ecological conditions are extremely suitable for legume production. The taste and aroma of products grown in Turkish soil differ. Legume products are accepted by the entire world as "Food of the Future" due to reasons such as their benefits to human health, requiring less water in production, protecting the soil and increasing its fertility. In Turkey, we are conducting various studies to increase legume production from traditional agricultural products and to encourage consumption. Through contract farming, we support our producers to produce without commercial concerns. All work conducted contributes to the protection of our domestic products, the support of sustainable production, and promotion domestically and abroad. While some countries faced difficulties in food supply security during the COVID-19 process, Turkey managed food supply well through timely precautions. If our country's agricultural land of more than 4 million hectares is evaluated through good planning, growth in agriculture can be achieved. According to TURKSTAT data, our country's legume production was reported to be at the 1.3 million level in 2020. In its latest report dated January 2021, the International Grains Council announced record-level production in world grain production. Looking at world legume production in the 2019/2020 period, a 19 percent increase to 102 million tons was realized. Turkey ranks third in world red lentil exports and sixth in chickpea exports. Turkey has become a net exporter of chickpeas thanks to increased production in recent years. In 2020, 135 thousand tons of chickpea were exported. Turkey's self-sufficiency ratio in chickpeas is 114 percent. Turkey has the potential to produce even more. Our country has rich soil structure; when properly evaluated and with a sustainable plan, it will be in a stronger position in crop cultivation. If we secure the production amount that will meet domestic consumption demand in legume products and conduct production planning by providing real-time data flow according to export potential, then we can speak of sustainable production. Turkey has the strength to be an important supply center and logistics hub in legume production. Anatolia is the gene center of grain and legume products. It has spread to the world through Anatolia. With its geographical structure, biodiversity, agricultural areas, crop pattern and richness, Turkey can both produce to meet its own needs and has the potential to export. In agriculture, to ensure sustainability, we will continue to present projections that produce long-term solutions by clearly identifying the points where our country excels and the areas it needs to develop. In the new world order, Turkey can gain very important advantages by correctly evaluating country potential in agricultural production. The agriculture and food sector improves a country's overall development and progress. For our country, the agriculture sector that can create added value through technology will bring sustainable economic growth.