Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exports Reach $155 Million

Mediterranean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association Chairman Ferhat Gürüz announced that the sector achieved USD 155 million in exports in August and recorded a 6,557-fold increase in sales to the Saudi Arabian market. Chairman Ferhat Gürüz stated that they realized USD 5.3 million in exports to Saudi Arabia in August, and continued as follows: "In the Saudi Arabian market, where we reached a total export value of USD 1.1 million in the first 7 months of 2022, we achieved strong momentum in August with the normalization of our bilateral relations. We aim to exceed the USD 90 million annual figures that we achieved in Saudi Arabia, an important export gateway for our sector, up to four years ago." [caption id="attachment_144908" align="aligncenter"] Ferhat Gürüz[/caption]

Regional exports in August reached USD 63 million

Mediterranean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association Chairman Ferhat Gürüz emphasized that in August, the fresh fruit and vegetable sector, which brought 270,940 tons of products to international markets, is making significant efforts both to combat pesticide residues, banned and unlicensed agricultural chemicals while strengthening the Turkey brand on the global arena, and to increase market diversification. "Our sector, which reached USD 147.7 million in export value in August last year, increased this figure to USD 155 million in August 2022. In the said period, our sector achieved a 5% increase compared to the same period last year, and as the Mediterranean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association, we contributed 41% to this performance. Regional exports in August reached USD 63 million with a 34% increase," he stated.

Normalization process with Saudi Arabia reflected positively in our exports

"Looking at the countries where we made the most exports in the eighth month of the year, Russia topped the list with a 50% increase and USD 62 million in value. This country was followed by Germany with USD 17.7 million in value and Ukraine with USD 10 million in value. When we looked at the countries where we captured the strongest export growth in August, Saudi Arabia stood out. In the Saudi Arabian market, where we exported fresh fruits and vegetables worth USD 91 million in 2018, our trade declined to USD 31.8 million in recent years and came to a standstill in 2021. In the first 7 months of 2022, we reached a total export value of USD 1.1 million to Saudi Arabia, and in August we realized exports of USD 5,328,000 to the country. Political relations between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, which have been positive since the beginning of the year, entered a normalization process through mutual high-level visits in recent months. The opening of a new chapter in bilateral relations has begun to reflect positively on our fresh fruit and vegetable sector's export figures. We hope that the gains previously achieved by our exporting companies in Saudi Arabia, an important market for the Turkish fresh fruit and vegetable sector, will return in the short term."

Peaches were our most exported product

Chairman Ferhat Gürüz stated that the Turkish fresh fruit and vegetable sector exported USD 124.7 million in fruits and USD 26.8 million in vegetables in August, and noted that peaches, grapes and figs stood out in the list of most exported products during this period. "In August, our most exported product was peaches with a 74% increase and USD 45.3 million in value. Grapes ranked second with USD 31.7 million in value, and figs ranked third with USD 20.3 million in value. These three fruits accounted for 62% of our sector's exports. In August, we captured the highest export growth in watermelons, apricots and tea. In watermelons we achieved USD 9.9 million in foreign exchange with a 3,472% increase, in apricots USD 5.2 million with an 899% increase, and in tea USD 2 million with a 166% increase," he stated. Chairman Ferhat Gürüz informed that the total exports of the fresh fruit and vegetable sector for the January-August 2022 period reached USD 1.77 billion, and that the Mediterranean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association held a 44% share with a value of USD 785.2 million during this period.